Payson Roundup

Gila Community College board member Don Crowley resigned from his seat Tuesday due to health problems.

In mid-February, the Gila County school superintendent will appoint a replacement for Crowley, whose seat expires in 2010. The appointee may run in 2010 to keep the seat, according to the superintendent’s office. Applications are due by 5 p.m., Jan. 30.

The Mayo Clinic diagnosed Crowley with multiple myeloma in 2007. The blood and bone marrow cancer has re-emerged, he wrote in his resignation letter.

“Although I look forward to giving my continued support to (the) college, I don’t feel I have the stamina to do what needs to be done at this crucial time as a board member,” Crowley wrote.

Multiple myeloma is the second most prevalent blood cancer after non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, according to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.

Crowley was originally appointed to the college’s board in 2005 following the resignation of Dick Wolfe. Voters re-elected him in 2006.

GCC’s board has begun an intensified effort to gain full-accreditation and requisite full funding. Because Gila County does not meet property valuation and population thresholds set by the state, it is not permitted to operate its own community college.

Eastern Arizona College operates GCC, and has ultimate say on academic and personnel decisions. GCC also receives less than half of the per-student funding as other community colleges because of its provisional status.

The new board member needs to have a bounty of energy, strength and dedication to lobby the state and make GCC a full-fledged college, Crowley wrote.

Anyone interested in the position must live in GCC’s District 1, which includes Pine, Strawberry, and sections of Payson.