“I just felt like I wanted to be a teacher, and that was my goal my entire life,” Rose Seck, a long-time member of the Carrollton Exempted Village Board of Education, says.
Seck has been a member of the board for 15 years. Prior to retiring, she had served the district in several other capacities, becoming the Elementary Supervisor after twelve years as a third-grade teacher. Eventually, she later became Curriculum Director for K-12 students. In total, she has served the Carrollton district for 35 years.
“I just love the students and the district,” Seck says when describing her motivation for becoming a board member. She makes it clear that her goal was not to promote a personal agenda; instead, it was “the wellbeing of the students and the school district,” in her words. She also credits her passion for education (which she has carried with her even from a very young age) as another part of her decision to serve on the board.
Currently, Seck serves on two committees: Curriculum and Policy. Seck also represents the board within the community by being a part of the Carrollton Business Women and serving on the Board of Directors for the Ashton Foundation, which awards $80,000 dollars in scholarships each year. Additionally, she has been a member of Delta Kappa Gamma–an educator’s society–since 1980.
Seck says that her greatest victory as a board member was when the new CMS/CHS complex was built without any taxpayer money. “It was always a dream of mine from the time that I started working at the school in 1973…that someday, Carrollton would have new schools,” she says. She describes the overall experience as “better than winning the lottery.”
But on the other hand, being a board member has not been without its difficulties. “I think one of the greatest challenges had to do with dealing with COVID…It was just a great concern of mine,” Seck says. She remembers this issue as being particularly stressful due to criticisms the board received for the way in which they navigated safety concerns. However, “it all worked out in the end,” which Seck credits to the board’s ability to listen to the parents and other constituents that they represent.
In her many years on the school board, Seck has also learned the importance of listening to her fellow board members. “I think what I learned is that I’m a part of a team…That was a hard lesson I learned when I first got on the board; I tried to say things or do things that reflected my own personal opinion and so forth,” Seck admits. As a result, she discovered that she needed to not only be more representative of the entire board, but also of the community at large. “You have to go with the consensus of the group,” she adds.
Seck’s current term consists of the remainder of 2023, as well as two additional years. At the moment, she is unsure of whether or not she will run again in the future. “It depends on my health and if I feel like I would still be beneficial on the board or not,” she explains. She also expresses joy that others are stepping up to the plate, saying, “I’m happy to see that there are younger people becoming interested in being school board members.”
If Seck could leave the students she serves with one piece of advice, it would be to “reach your dreams by working hard and setting goals.” She also says that “everything we do depends on the decisions we make.”
All and all, Mrs. Seck has had a profound impact on our community, and students would do well to emulate her in her determination, work ethic, and integrity.