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Portola Valley Mayor Maryann Moise Derwin in 2015. Photo by Michelle Le
The Portola Valley Town Council members appointed Maryann Derwin as mayor and Craig Hughes as vice mayor during a meeting over Zoom last week.
Council members chose Derwin to be the town s new mayor, and Hughes to serve as vice mayor, for 2021 during the Dec. 9 meeting.
Council member John Richards nominated Derwin, whose term ends in 2022, while outgoing Mayor Jeff Aalfs nominated Hughes.
Derwin was elected to the council in 2005. She grew up in Mendocino County and moved to Portola Valley in 1992 for the good schools and the bucolic rural ambiance.
Karyn Bechtel, a district parent and outgoing Portola Valley School District governing board member, said parents are very interested in their children returning to campus. Still, she doesn t see the value of students returning to classrooms just to sit on their computers.
Dr. Caroline Krauskopf, a parent who has been vocal at numerous school board meetings about wanting students to return to classrooms, said at-home learning is resulting in learning loss and negative health impacts for students. In-person learning has been working in other schools across the globe and country, with few schools becoming hot spots for COVID-19 transmission, she said.