GUSD board president to step down, citing illness

Mary Boger, a longtime member of the Glendale Unified school board, announced her resignation Tuesday evening, citing a chronic condition she said made it impossible to do the work.

“I feel that following my doctor’s advice and fulfilling my obligations as a board member are not compatible,” she said during the board meeting. “There continue to be many things I am unable to do and many activities in which I am unable to participate.”

“Members of this board should be capable of giving 100% to this important position,” she added.

Boger, the board’s current president, announced her plans to the surprise of many of her colleagues. In a prepared statement, she stated she would be stepping down following the Aug. 12 meeting, approximately eight months before her term officially expires in April 2015.

“It breaks my heart to leave this board,” she said. “This is one of the hardest decisions with which I have been forced.”

Shortly after making the announcement, school board members and district staff members took turns hugging her.

“We’re very appreciative of all Mary’s done for Glendale Unified,” said Supt. Dick Sheehan. “She’s going out on top.”

Prior to the meeting, Boger, 68, said in a telephone interview that she and her husband Donald are planning on selling their home and moving to a retirement community in Massachusetts. She said the intense pain and fatigue associated with her condition kept her from fully participating in school matters.

Boger said that a recent 10-week absence due to the illness led her to the decision to step down.

“You need to be there,” she said. “Showing up is important.”

Boger was first appointed to the board in 2002, and won reelection in 2003, 2007 and 2011.