Governing Board

About the Governing Board

The Laveen Elementary School Governing Board is comprised of five elected community members who volunteer their time and talents to ensure the district delivers the best possible educational opportunities to Laveen students.

The Board performs the following functions necessary to the discharging of its responsibilities:

The legislative function is the policy-making aspect of the school system. It is the policy of the Board to retain and exercise full legislative authority and control over the schools by adopting general policies or by acting directly in matters not covered by its policies. The Governing Board’s Policy Manual may be viewed through the Arizona School Board Association’s website.
The executive function of the Board is concerned with placing in operation existing Board policy. Most of this function is delegated by the Board to its executive and administrative officer, the Superintendent.
The appraisal function involves the determination of the efficiency of the school operation and an evaluation of the educational program of the District based on the policies as outlined in the Policy Manual.

Meeting Information

Governing Board meetings are held once a month and begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Board Room at the Laveen Education Center located at 5001 W. Dobbins Road in Laveen, Arizona, 85339 (unless otherwise posted). All regular, special, and emergency meetings of the Governing Board are open to the public except during executive sessions. Notices and agendas of all meetings are posted at the Laveen Education Center, at least 24 hours prior to each meeting and can also be found at the menu to the right of this page. Laveen uses the BoardDocs platform for posting meeting agendas and minutes.

By Arizona Law, the Governing Board may meet in Executive Session to discuss personnel matters, pending legal matters, property purchases, student disciplinary actions, and employee negotiations.

Governing Board meetings may be viewed on the Board’s YouTube Channel.

The Policy and Request to Speak form links provide information on public participation at Board meetings. The Governing Board designates up to 30 minutes of its meetings for public comment.

Agendas and Minutes

Board agendas and minutes are posted on Laveen’s BoardDocs page and at all school sites. Board minutes are available at your local school office after the meeting.

Statement of Location Where All Notices of the Meetings of the Laveen Elementary School District No. 59 Governing Board Will Be Posted

Pursuant to A.R.S. §38-431.02, the Laveen Elementary School District No. 59 Governing Board hereby states that all notices of the meetings of the Laveen Elementary School District Governing Board and any of its committees and subcommittees will be posted outside the Laveen Elementary School District No. 59 District Office located at 5001 W. Dobbins Road, Laveen, Arizona 85339. Such notices will include an agenda or information concerning the manner in which the public may obtain an agenda for the meeting.

Governing Board Members

Jill Barragan, President

Jill Barragan has served on the Laveen Elementary School District Governing Board since 2013. She served as Board Clerk in 2015 and 2020 and as Board President from 2017-2019. She was again elected as President in 2021 and 2022. Barragan was originally appointed to the board in 2013 by the Maricopa County Education Service Agency. She was reelected in 2014, 2018, and 2022 and now serves a four-year term.

Barragan became Assistant Superintendent of Business Operations for the Paradise Valley Unified School District in 2021. Prior to that, she was Avondale Elementary District’s Executive Director of Business Services for over 10 years. She also worked for the Arizona Department of Education in the school finance division. Barragan began her career as an accountant for the Salvation Army.

She was also elected to the executive board of the Arizona Association of School Business Officials (AASBO) to serve a four-year term as Vice President, President-Elect, President and Immediate Past President respectively. Prior to this, she was elected as Treasurer of AASBO and served a two-year term from July 2014 – July 2016.

Barragan joined the EQUIP Leadership Team in April of 2017 to work on educating legislators and constituents on public education matters. She is a graduate of Arizona State University.

Her term expires in December 2026.

Mekell Bell, Member

Mekell Bell is a proud Laveen resident of over 16 years and a Laveen school district parent. She and her husband fell in love with the area and mountain views and bought their first home in Laveen in 2008, which they still live in. Since then, they’ve had 5 kids, 4 of whom attend a school in the Laveen district with the youngest to follow in the coming years, and they plan to stay long term because they love the community, schools, and people. Mekell is an Arizona native, born and raised in Tempe and attended college at Northern Arizona University, now calling Laveen her forever home with her family.

Mekell is passionate about education, public schools, and making our neighborhood schools the best they can be. She has the advantage of being both a parent and also an educator. Bell began her teaching career in 2006 and taught high school English and Language Arts and also ESL. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a Master’s degree in Secondary Education. She has diverse teaching experience having taught high school students in Phoenix in schools in a residential treatment center, at juvenile detention, and at a school for refugees. Teaching has always felt like her calling, and because of that, she takes educating our children and their safety seriously while also being an advocate for teachers.

Bell is very involved in the Laveen community and volunteers at her kids’ school and as a coach in the area. She has been a Junior Achievement teacher since 2016 in all her kids’ classrooms and loves helping where she can at the school. She also helps coach the school softball team and is the head coach for the middle school volleyball team. She has been a leader of her local church youth group for 15 years, teaching night classes to teens and planning community service projects and activities for youth in the area. Mekell played sports her whole life and now has a passion for youth sports and coaching. She is a volunteer basketball coach for the Jr. Suns program and has coached at the Cesar Chavez and South Mountain community centers since 2021. Bell also has a love for animals and helps to rescue dogs around Laveen. Because of that soft spot, she currently has 5 dogs of her own that she’s rescued from the community.

Her term expires in 2028.

Linda Abegg, Member

Linda Abegg is the newest member of the Laveen Governing Board, having won a four-year seat in the November 2022 election.

Abegg has lived in Laveen for over 15 years and is a Laveen School District parent. She has been active in her school’s PTOs since 2014.

She has been a member of the Laveen Village Planning Committee for six years and currently serves as Chair. She also serves on the board of the Laveen District Insurance Trust.

Abegg earned her bachelor of science degree in elementary education from Brigham Young University and was a classroom teacher for three years, including in the Laveen School District.

Her term expires in December 2026.

Jennifer Goetzke, Member

Jennifer Goetzke has lived in Laveen for 17 years and is a Laveen School District parent. She is an active volunteer at her daughter’s school and is a coach for the Girls on the Run club.

Goetzke works in the human resources field and holds a SHRM-CP certification. She is a State of Arizona employee, currently assigned to the Department of Economic Security as the Deputy Chief Human Resources Officer.

Goetzke is passionate about volunteering, some of her favorite volunteer sites are with Christ Church of the Valley, St. Mary’s Food Bank, and Feed My Starving Children. You can also find her at Scooptacular volunteering to check out the new ice cream flavors each month!

Born and raised in Denver, and then Michigan, she now calls Arizona her forever home with her husband, three children, and their pets.

Goetzke was appointed to the Board by the Office of the Maricopa County School Superintendent to fill a vacancy. Her term expires in December 2024.

Kayla Parra, Member

For questions or to reach the Governing Board, email superintendent@laveeneld.org.