Williams-Gilbert settles in as new school board member

MEDICAL LAKE — In a true sign of the times, Wendy Williams-Gilbert was sworn in to the school board on Nov. 24, taking her oath via Zoom as dictated by board president Rod Von Lehe.

Williams-Gilbert replaced Peggy Schweikhardt, who resigned in October after 31 years on the board. She’s a clinical associate professor at Washington State-Spokane’s College of Nursing and the pre-licensing Bachelor of Science-Nursing director.

She’s been at WSU for five years, but her higher ed teaching experience as a nurse dates back 11 years before that.

Williams-Gilbert was the associate dean of the school of nursing at Spokane Community College for 18 months before her start at WSU. She’s also been a faculty member at Gonzaga, Southern Mississippi and the University of Alabama-Huntsville.

Now, she’s taking her wealth of nursing knowledge and teaching experience to the school board.

“I think my experiences as a nurse and teaching in higher ed (will help),” Williams-Gilbert said. “Having somebody with a health lens is helpful to the school board, I think.”

Williams-Gilbert has three children in the school district, including a 17-year-old stepdaughter and 15 and 13-year-old sons. Her children’s successful acclimation to the school district was a driving force in her desire to apply for the school board.

“Seeing how well my family moved…I wanted to give back to the community,” Williams-Gilbert said.

She noted that one of her sons has issues with hearing loss, and has been doing much better since moving to Medical Lake.

“I couldn’t believe how well he was doing,” Williams-Gilbert said. “He’s done much better at a small school.”

Superintendent Tim Ames said Williams-Gilbert was very equipped for the role. She had to be, as she was the only candidate to apply for Schweikhardt’s position.

“She’s been on multiple boards and has children in the district,” Ames said. “She had a great interview, and she’s very qualified.”

Williams-Gilbert takes over Board Position No. 5, which includes parts of Fairchild Airforce Base (including Michael Anderson Elementary) and extends to Ritchey Road and Brooks Road. A full district map is available on the district website.

Drew Lawson can be reached at drew@cheneyfreepress.com.