North Idaho College’s two longest-serving trustees want to stay on the board.
Tarie Zimmerman and Brad Corkill announced their bids for reelection Wednesday morning.
The seats for Zone 1 and Zone 2 will be on the ballot during the Nov. 3 General Election. The filing window for the nonpartisan races opens on August. 17.
Both trustees were first elected in 2022 and served their first term during the most contentious part of the accreditation crisis. The two were effectively the minority on the board at the time.
In the fall of 2024, a slate of three trustees supported by Save NIC and the North Idaho Republicans won election. Since then, the board has been almost entirely in agreement.
Corkill has spent years serving on public board but the 75-year-old said this term would be his last if elected.
“It’s a very rewarding experience,” Corkill said of why he’s running for another term. “I enjoy being a part of that institution.”
Corkill said he doesn’t have any specific goals if re-elected, largely because “a college is a dynamic institution.”
“It’s always in some form of change,” he said. “My mantra is nothing is ever finished, everything is a work in progress.”
Zimmerman replaced Corkill as board chair last year. She also sits on the Association of Community College Trustees Public Policy and Advocacy Committee.
She told EdNews the work of updating NIC’s policies has been very rewarding.
“I’ve enjoyed working on the board, especially the last two years of bringing the college into good standing with the NWCCU,” Zimmerman said.
Zimmerman said she’s especially proud of programs like Cardinal Classical, launching this fall, that meet the specific needs of the North Idaho community. She hopes to continue supporting programs that will meet business and student needs and ultimately result in more North Idahoans having jobs that pay well enough for them to continue living and working in the area.
Having already been through a period of contentious board meetings and a high-profile election cycle, Zimmerman said she feels prepared for whatever happens during this campaign season.
