The Clinton County Board of Education is now back to full strength after the appointment of Leslie Stockton, 41, on March 26 by the Kentucky Department of Education to fill a vacancy.

Stockton was officially sworn in as a new board member last Monday, April 8 by Clinton Circuit Clerk Jake Staton and attended her first board meeting that evening.

Stockton was chosen to replace former board chairperson Paula Key, who resigned at the first of the year after serving some 10 years on the board. Stockton will serve in the third district, which is composed of the Illwill and Speck precincts.

The new board member, who will fill out the remaining two years of the unexpired term, noted during an interview last week that she was the first in her family to attend and complete college.

Stockton is a 1996 graduate of Clinton County High School and was co-Valedictorian of her class.

During her high school years, she noted she was involved in several extra-curricular activities, including being in the band and on the academic team, among others.

The new board member is a mother with a son, Braden, who is in the 8th grade at Clinton County Middle School. She is the daughter of Shirley Stover Stockton and the late Ricky G. Stockton.

Stockton holds a nursing degree and is an Emergency Medical Manager, which involves recruitment of medical doctors, and works from home in that capacity. She has also worked as an ICU and ER nurse at Central Baptist Hospital in Lexington and has worked as a travel nurse.

Her educational background, which she noted includes such things as dealing with budgets, job performance and so forth, gives her extra insight for the job as school board member and noted she is willing and eager to learn.

As far as the school district itself, she feels the district is sound, but says there is always room for improvement. As a board member, she added the board should be the best stewards possible for students.

With her own experience of coming from a small town, she has seen the difficulties some students have in transitioning to other areas after high school.

She thinks some main priorities of board members are to assure funding is allocated properly and they should concentrate on providing the maximum opportunity to provide the best education available. “I know we will have to make hard decisions,” Stockton added, “but those decisions should produce results.”

Stockton also believes offering students extra activities outside of direct academics is also important, saying that some students who may not excel in a classroom setting have other talents, such as technical skills.

The new board member also addressed the issue of “bullying” in school, noting it was, in fact, a real issue that needed to be addressed. She felt it was worse at the middle and high school levels, but also filtered down into the lower grades.

“I think we (district) need to have disciplinary policies in place and respond to the (bullying) issue the best way we can when it happens.” She continued, “I also think we should offer opportunities and recognize gifts students may have outside of academics.”

In closing, Stockton said she was “excited” about being a part of the team (board) and also to her constituents said she welcomed any feedback, questions or concerns they may have and looks forward to serving the students of her district.