Julie Lundstrom was chosen from a strong field of eight candidates to fill an open seat on the Ellsworth School Board.

Lundstrom will fill the remainder of the term of Dana Glor, who resigned for work reasons.

The Ellsworth School District advertised the opening after Glor resigned in February. Each candidate supplied a questionnaire and were given 10 minutes to state their case at a special board meeting Monday night.

Following that, the protocol called four rounds of voting until the majority of the board settled on a candidate.

Here is the background information Lundstrom supplied to the district.

Julie Lundstrom Education: BS, University of MN, Field of Study: Agricultural Engineering MS, University of MN, Field of Study: Mechanical Engineering

Current Occupation: President, Rush River Research Corp. (2016-present) – a small grant-funded engineering company I co-founded with other engineers with a vision of developing high-impact technology; partnering with experts in research hospitals, academia, healthcare related companies, and commercialization collaborators to improve patient care. A particular passion of mine is advocating for better healthcare innovations concerning our aging populations and children. In growing this company, I am applying and fostering management skills such as; project planning, financial management, team building, collaboration, and project execution. I will utilize this skillset while serving on the school board.

Previous Work Experience: Senior Engineering Specialist, 3M Company, Energy & Electronics Lab (2001 – 2019). – I specialized in developing proprietary equipment and material solutions for multi-layer films and optical components. The display enhancing and energy-saving optical films helped transform the cell phone, monitor, and TV display industry and are used in solar and capacitor film applications. I also led teams to advance co-extruded polymer film capabilities. I utilized communication skills to generate support for the plans I developed, secured funding, and worked with internal and external equipment experts to deploy specified equipment and technology.

What areas of special skills, expertise and/or contributions do you feel you can make as a school board member?

I am a strong advocate for our public school system, wanting to improve the learning environment and to focus on what is best for all students to achieve academic success in ways that will have a lasting, positive impact. In addition to parenting five children who currently attend Ellsworth schools, my professional career, volunteer service, my experience in the community, and my understanding of the district, make me a well-qualified candidate for the Ellsworth School board position.

I served as a member of the Ad Hoc Facilities Committee, consisting of diverse and committed community and staff members. We were commissioned to gather information and examine our district's current and future needs and draw conclusions that would shape the future learning environment for our students. As part of that committee, we spent hours reviewing proposals, public opinion surveys, and the financial implications. I remained an active member of the team throughout the entire planning and construction process to bring the community’s now beloved elementary school to life. We were forward-thinking, accepting the idea that tomorrow's classrooms look different than today's, and bold enough to lead and educate our community throughout the entire process. While serving on the school board, I will leverage this background knowledge of the school facilities and referendum process.

I have fostered an effective and collaborative leadership style throughout my career that will enable me to work productively in this board position and with the rest of the board members. My communication style is thoughtful and sincere. I desire to understand issues presented from multiple sides to provide sound judgment. I strive to remain objective and respectful, even with challenging events and discussions.

for middle school and high school youth. I assist with other projects/activities throughout the year, ( 275 hours per year, most of which is chaperoning the summer trip).

What do you view as key issues facing the school district at this time?

The need for on-going pandemic related leadership from our district to address and manage the constantly changing situation while balancing what is best for the students and public safety.

•Addressing the student achievement gaps due to virtual learning, pandemic family stress, the burden on our teachers, and issues with inequalities and access to reliable internet.

•_Building a strategy for teacher/staff retention and succession planning.

•The Operational Referendum is coming to vote next year and will require the board to promote/educate the community to approve this requested funding.

Other information you would like to add?

I love the Ellsworth Community and have been a resident here for most of my life. As graduates of the Ellsworth school system, my husband Keith and I have established strong roots here. We chose to make our home in this community and raise our family here. We have five children in the district spanning all the schools (Ann- 11th, Mary -8th, Matthew -6th, Luke 4th, Eve Marie – 5K). This past year was challenging, to say the least, as a working professional juggling the added stress of our children's virtual learning and internet inadequacies. When the kids were back to in-person school, there was a learning curve navigating the necessary procedural changes and remote teacher/parent interactions. Even so, the Ellsworth schools have remained supportive and understanding throughout the unorthodox school year, ensuring a reliable environment for Ellsworth families. I am proud of how the Ellsworth schools managed the delicate balance of providing quality education while maintaining a safe community.