Elizabeth Lyons to Serve as President of East Lansing Public Schools Board of Education
Former Vice President of the East Lansing Public Schools Board of Education Elizabeth Lyons was unanimously voted in as president of the board by the other members of the school board in their first meeting of the year Monday.
Former president of the board, Chris Martin made the nomination for board members to elect Lyons as president, thanking the board for electing him to the role several times during his time on the board.
“For the last couple years, I have loved doing it, and I really appreciate the confidence and trust that you put in me, and I hope that I did a good job for you,” Martin said. “I’m also really excited to… give somebody else a chance to take on the role.”
Lyons was first elected to the board of education in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic and is serving her second 4-year term after receiving the most votes in the school board election as she and three other members were elected to the board in 2024.
Lyons nominated former Board of Education Secretary Tali Faris-Hylen to take on the vice president role on the board which was approved unanimously. Martin was voted as secretary and Kath Edsall was voted to continue serving as treasurer of the board.
Monday’s meeting was a short one, less than a half an hour long, but Superintendent for East Lansing Public Schools Dori Leyko advised the East Lansing community to be aware that the annual kindergarten pre-K information night for incoming students is coming up on Feb. 24.
Children who are age 5 by Dec. 1, 2026 are eligible for kindergarten and children who are age 4 by Dec. 1, 2026 are eligible for pre-K programming, Leyko reminded the public during the meeting.
The information night will be held at MacDonald Middle School with more details to be announced soon, Leyko said, but it’s important to get the word out to families that don’t have any children involved in the schools yet.
Before the weekend, students at East Lansing High School walked out of classes in protest of the fatal shooting of a woman by a Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, officer in Minneapolis on Jan. 7.
Students at the high school gathered Jan. 9 to decry the killing of the woman, Renee Good, 37, and condemn the actions of ICE under President Donald Trump’s mass-deportation focused administration.
The board did not address the protest during the meeting, but Leyko previously told ELi in a text message that school leadership is proud of students who engage in political activism and the schools are prepared to partner with student groups to facilitate safe environments for students to demonstrate their beliefs.
“This administration and Board of Education has always supported students using their voice to peacefully protest and encourage meaningful action,” Leyko said in a text message to ELi.