Sep. 7—There's a new face on Spokane Public Schools' board of directors, with members at Wednesday's meeting approving a longtime district parent volunteer to fill their vacant seat.

Members voted unanimously to appoint Hilary Kozel to the board, filling the slot previously held by Riley Smith. Smith left the board in June after he was hired to be the Eastern Washington outreach director for U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell.

Though she's new to the school board, Kozel has long been involved with the district as a parent and volunteer. The stay-at-home-mom spent over seven years on the district's citizens advisory committee, volunteered on the long-range strategic planning work group and volunteered for the last levy campaign. Kozel spent almost 10 years volunteering at schools.

"Because of my volunteer experience, I have sort of seen an inside look at how the district runs; I know there's so much that I don't know," Kozel said. "But I think I have enough experience that it kind of brings a sense of calm."

Other candidates were "dedicated and thoughtful," Board President Mike Wiser said, but Kozel's experience on committees would make her a quick study, assuming the vacant seat with a bond and levy renewal headed to the ballot in February.

"I think what we all agreed on is we wanted somebody who could come up to speed pretty quickly," Wiser said.

"I feel like Hilary Kozel has volunteered in our schools and followed the school board business for several years now," said Nikki Lockwood, vice president on the board. "And I think that she would be really well-equipped to step up here in an unexpected time to support the work of our school district."

The board received 17 applicants and interviewed six finalists.

Other finalists were Providence consultant and administrator Megan Read; Sarah Dixit, organizing director at Pro-Choice Washington; Nicole Bishop, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program strategic partnership coordinator; Amy Lutz, public health program specialist at Northeast Washington Educational Service District; and Scot Webb, a case resource manager with the Department of Social and Health Services.

Kozel took her seat following the board's approval Wednesday evening, bracing herself for two years before the seat is up for election in 2025. She said she's eager to advance equity in the district and advocate for programs to prepare high school students post-graduation.

"It's becoming cliche, but with AI and all of the challenges kids face now, we really need to give them opportunities to have a foot in the real world while they're still in high school," Kozel said. "They're already doing that in the district with dual credit and job shadowing; we just need to continue on that path."