Charles Staadecker recently has been elected to serve as the chair of the Puget Sound Educational Service District (ESD) board of directors.

Staadecker – a longtime supporter of the arts and public education – was elected to the board in 2008. He represents approximately 280,500 residents is his director district.

He served as vice chair for the board as well as the president of the Association of Educational Service Districts (AESD) executive board last year.

The agency serves as the lead organization for a grant written with seven King County school districts – including Kent and Auburn – and the Community Center for Educational Results (CCER) that won $40 million in federal Race to the Top funds from the U.S. Department of Education.

The King County districts' application was among 16 winners selected out of 372 applications. Awards ranged from $5 million to $40 million, depending on the number of students served by the plan. The Road Map District Consortium was one of only two applicants to win the maximum award of $40 million.

"Charlie's leadership will be invaluable as we implement this comprehensive initiative to raise student achievement in Seattle and South King County," said John Welch, Superintendent of the Puget Sound ESD. "He has been a staunch supporter of our grant application and our efforts to raise achievement. "

The winning plan covers 261 schools and 150,000 students, including 36,000 high-need children.

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