MOTHER OF THREE SEEKS BOARD SEAT; COSWERT FILES FOR 1-YEAR SCHOOL TERM

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- A Cape Girardeau woman filed Friday for a seat on the Cape Girardeau Board of Education, making her the fourth person to file since the filing period opened Wednesday.

Seeking a one-year, unexpired term is Julia Cowsert. Lyle A. Davis, who filed Wednesday, is also seeking the seat, vacated by Benjamin Lewis, who is now Division III associate circuit judge.

Seeking the two three-year terms available on the board are incumbent Patrick R. Ruopp and Gwen Bennett.

For Cowsert, it's her first run at public office. But, she said, it's something she's thought about for some time.

"I've wanted to be part of the Cape Girardeau School Board for several years," she said. "Having one, and soon to be three children enrolled in Cape public schools, I'm very interested in the educational futures of today's children."

Cowsert's 6-year-old daughter, Heather, is a first-grader at Hawthorn school. Her other children are Benjamin, 2, and Joshua, 1.

She said she has a definite set of issues she'd like to confront if elected to the board. They are classroom size; stronger lines of communication between parents, teachers and students; the parents-as-teachers program; and the search for a new superintendent.

Classroom size, she said, needs to be kept down. "I've found it difficult to adequately deliver quality educational services to classes of 20 and 30 students," the former educator said. "Some students require individualized instruction and often times `lose out' when teachers are responsible for such large groups."

Cowsert said successful educational experiences happen only when there is adequate communication among parents, teachers and students.

"This can be accomplished through a strong PTA and more frequent parent-teacher-student conferences," she said.

As for the district's current superintendent search, Cowsert said it's something she'd like to be involved in, and she says she disagrees with the board's decision to hire an outside consultant at a fee of $10,000.

"I'm opposed to using district funds to hire a consultant to pick a superintendent," she said. "There are people here in the area who are very much qualified to conduct the search.

"There are so many veteran educators in this area who are more than qualified to assist in the search. I feel the money could have been allocated in a better way."

Cowsert is employed as a youth specialist at the East Missouri Action Agency in Cape Girardeau. She previously worked as head of the Regional Adult Education Program in Cairo, Ill. She holds a bachelor's degree in education from Southeast Missouri State University and is currently working on her master's degree in counseling at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va.

She and her husband, Larry, have lived in Cape Girardeau for the past six years.

Her current position enables her to work extensively with area youths, ages 16-21, Cowsert said. She assists them with job searches and job development.

She said keeping children in school is another one of her concerns.

"I've seen a lot of frustration and despair involving the question, `Why stay in school, what's in it for me?'" she said. "I'd like to be directly involved with helping students see the importance of education and motivating them to hang in there."

As for why she's seeking the one-year term instead of a three-year term, Cowsert said she wants an opportunity to assess the needs of the board and the district.

"I'd like to see how my ideas can help the board better serve the parents and students of the district," she said.

Cowsert said she credits her parents, both former educators, for her interest in education. Her mother, Grace Duff, of Tamms, Ill., is the former deputy superintendent for the state of Illinois.

Filing remains open through 5 p.m. Jan. 29.