ISLE OF WIGHT—Robert Eley was appointed Thursday night to fill the vacant Carrsville District seat on the Isle of Wight County School Board with a 4-0 vote.

After his appointment, Eley said he’d been involved in the schools “on the outside” for a number of years, even serving as president of Windsor Youth Association.

“Sometimes you’ve got to step up when you want stuff done that’s not getting done like you would like to see it done,” he said.

Eley said he was asked to consider seeking appointment to the seat after Kenneth Bunch resigned and was subsequently appointed to the Board of Supervisors.

“After a lot of thought,” Eley agreed to throw his hat in the ring and was nominated for the seat last week, along with Ben Rideout and Tim Bradshaw.

Before voting to appoint Eley, Hardy District board member Herb DeGroft said it was important for citizens to understand that there are certain qualifications that must be met for a board member.

“It’s important that citizens understand that this is a very responsible job,” he said. “It’s not just sitting up here making ‘yes’ and ‘no’ votes.”

Eley will serve until the circuit court sets a special election to fill the seat. Eley said he would decide by June whether he would run in the special election, which will likely be held in November.

“Right now, I’m just trying to get through this meeting and continue on a little bit longer, and hopefully I can do what I can to help our district—in fact all the districts,” he said.

Board members also voted 3-1 Thursday to appoint Windsor District board member T. Hayes Griffin the vice chairman, a position previously held by Bunch. DeGroft cast the dissenting vote.