FARMINGTON — Farmington selectmen on Tuesday, May 28, appointed Dina Spenciner to the Regional School Unit 9 board of directors. She will fill the seat vacated by Janice David in April until the municipal elections next year.

There was only one application for the seat, “seems like a qualified individual,” Chair Joshua Bell said.

“We assume that she is willing to run for the position,” Selectman Dennis O’Neil commented. She expresses a passion, he noted.

Spenciner has degrees in social psychology and early childhood education, served 12 years at a preschool in Massachusetts – first as a teacher and then director, according to her application. “I fully understand what it takes to run a school from every angle such as parent relationships, teaching, budget creation, curriculum planning, and all the aspects of staffing,” it notes. “I am passionate about the education of young children and have made it my life’s work.”

Spenciner moved to Farmington during the COVID-19 pandemic, has connections to Farmington through her husband. His mother was a professor at University of Maine at Farmington, his great grandfather built a camp on Clearwater Lake in Industry in 1927 and one of his ancestors fought with the 16th Infantry in the Civil War.

Bell asked if anyone knew Spenciner.

“I haven’t met her,” Selectman Richard Morton replied. “The people she describes as part of her family tree I am all familiar with. She seems highly motivated and well qualified.”

“The education of children is of paramount importance to a community,” Spenciner wrote in her application. “Those who help run and make decisions about the education of the children have an important role to play. The decisions should not be made casually.”