Former Hanford High principal takes open seat on Richland School Board

A former Hanford High School principal is taking the empty seat on the Richland School Board.

The board picked Ken Gosney, the CEO of Goodwill Industries of the Columbia, out of a list of six finalists for the position following a closed-door meeting Monday.

Prior to his five years at the head of Goodwill in the Tri-Cities, Gosney worked for 16 years as an educator and administrator including seven years as the Hanford High principal.

He was one of 19 who applied for the position left open after Rick Donahoe resigned in late July. The former Hanford engineer and previous head of the Children’s Reading Foundation stepped down after 11 years to move to Michigan.

If Gosney wants to retain the position, he will need to run for election in November 2021 to serve out the remainder of Donahoe’s term.

He joins the board at a challenging time as school officials struggle to decide when to bring students back into classrooms for in-person learning during the COVID pandemic.

Two weeks ago, the Richland board split 3-1 after a four-hour meeting to bring preschoolers and kindergarten students back this week.

Then they will start first- and second-graders the week of Nov. 4. The remaining elementary students would come back on Nov. 12.

No decision has been made on the return of middle and high schoolers.