County commission chair Jarrett

hands gavel to Bartholomew

 

By James Tilson

Staff writer

Jan. 18, 2018

 

MANTI—Claudia Jarrett, chair of the Sanpete County Commission, stepped down as chair and was appointed as chair pro tem for the remainder of her term.

During the most recent meeting of the Sanpete County Commission on Jan. 2, Jarrett, four-term chair of the county commission, stepped down from her post and nominated Scott Bartholomew as the new chair of the commission.

Jarrett had approached Bartholomew before announcing her decision in order to make the transition seamless.

When the com

mission approved Bartholomew as chair, Jarrett was appointed as chair pro tem for the rest of her term, which runs out when 2018 ends.

Saying she believes in term limits, Jarrett announced that it was time for “new blood” in the post and that it was a “perfect time” to move on.

When she stepped down from the chair, Jarrett also announced she was “almost certain” she would not seek another term on the commission after her current term expires.

Jarrett has lived in Mt. Pleasant for 45 years, and she and her late husband, Melvin, have three children together and five grandchildren.

She has a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in business education and taught at North Sanpete High School before teaching and working at Snow College for 30 years.  She also has a doctoral degree in business information and technology.

Jarrett was first elected to the Sanpete County commission in 2003. The primary campaign during that election, against Gene Jacobson, was what Publisher Suzanne Dean called “the hardest fought local political campaign that I’ve seen during my years with the Messenger.”

Jarrett has served as commission chair for 13 years, and in addition has sat on quite a few boards and committees, including the Community Impact Board.

Jarrett said a lot of commissions in other counties rotate the chairmanship. Yet during her years of service, the other commissioners have tended to have full-time jobs or businesses, while she has been retired. “So I’ve been happy to take on the extra duty,” she said.

She added she hoped passing the chairmanship to Commissioner Bartholomew now would create some continuity.

Jarrett explained that she made this move now to create a transition period during which she would still be on the commission and able to assist the new chair.

“Scott [Bartholomew] is a former mayor and has the leadership skills necessary for this position,” Jarrett said. She added Bartholomew is ready for the challenge of the position and has her full support.

Bartholomew expressed regret that Jarrett would not continue on as the chair, saying Jarrett “has done an excellent job. I sure wish she could stay” as chair.

He went on to explain that “the county doesn’t realize all that she has done, and continues to do, in her job. It’s a very complicated job, and she has performed marvelously.”