Matt Wyatt looks to learn on EIS board

The Elizabethtown Independent Schools board will have at least one new face among its members in the upcoming year.

Kelly Cantrall

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Matt Wyatt will be filling a seat on the Elizabethtown Independent Schools board in January after winning an uncontested election in November. Board members Dianne Cooper and Tony Kuklinski didn’t seek re-election to the board.

Wyatt has sought a public service position before after running for a spot on the Elizabethtown City Council. But Elizabethtown Independent Schools also has a place in Wyatt’s heart, as he attended the district, has a son who graduated from EIS and another who currently attends Helmwood Heights Elementary School. Wyatt graduated from Elizabethtown High School in 1990.

“I have great pride in the district,” he said.

Wyatt said serving on the school board wasn’t something he had previously considered, but as a parent he became more involved and interested in the district and its decisions.

“As a parent, you start to see decisions really matter on a micro level,” he said.

In a previous position, he worked extensively with school insurance and was able to see some of the inner workings of districts through that role. He believes that has given him some beneficial experience for the board position. He now runs a consulting company, Volition Software, in Louisville.

Wyatt will be a part of a large upcoming decision in choosing the next superintendent for the district. Superintendent Gary French plans to retire at the end of the school year.

Wyatt said the district has experienced some instability in the leadership role in the past, and he hopes to avoid that this time.

“We have to make sure the decision we make is a good decision,” he said.

But Wyatt said he mostly intends to listen a good deal to the interested parties of the district and learn what they want and need, instead of coming in with his own wish list.

“I’m not there to impose any goals,” he said.

With Wyatt filling one vacated seat that leaves another that still remains open. The Kentucky Department of Education has accepted applications for the position, and will be naming someone in the near future.

Kelly Cantrall can be reached at (270) 505-1747 or kcantrall@thenewsenterprise.com.