Yavapai County School Superintendent Tim Carter is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Stephen L. Bracety to the Yavapai College Governing Board to represent District 5.
Mr. Bracety is well known in the community and has resided here for eighteen (18) years. He has held many positions within the hospitality industry, including service as the General Manager of the Prescott Resort and Conference Center. He is currently the Vice President of Operations and Talent Management with the Grace Hospitality Group.
Mr. Bracety holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from Buffalo State College and a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. Mr. Bracety is married, and the couple have a daughter that is a junior at Northern Arizona University.
He has served as the President of the Prescott Frontier Rotary, was named the 2014 Man of the Year by Prescott Area Leadership, has served as the Board Chair of the Prescott Valley Chamber of Commerce. He was formerly on the Board of Directors of the Arizona Hotel and Lodging Association. He has served on the Board of Directors for the Yavapai County Big Brothers and Big Sisters, is the Past President of the Prescott Fine Arts Association, and Past Board Chair of the Arizona Community Foundation. Mr. Bracety was the Founder of the City of Prescott Tourism Advisory Committee.
He has been working with various non-profits for many years on joint educational projects. An example was a recent early childhood literacy initiative, which had tremendous success, under the leadership of the Arizona Community Foundation of Yavapai County, which partnered with community stakeholders for financial support and was operated by the Yavapai County Education Service Agency (YCESA). Mr. Bracety will be sworn in at a public event at Yavapai College at 9:00 am on Monday, December 5, 2022. His term will begin on January 1, 2023. He may be reached at 928-775-7271.
Mr. Carter received a letter of resignation from Yavapai College Governing Board Member Mitch Padilla, who currently represents District 5, effective December 31, 2022. Mr. Padilla has recently been elected as the Justice of the Peace for the Prescott Precinct. Superintendent Carter would like to thank Mr. Padilla for his exceptional service to Yavapai College and the residents of District 5 over the last two years. We wish him well in his new judicial role, believing that he will do extremely well.
Mr. Carter posted the vacancy for this non-partisan seat on the Yavapai College Governing Board several weeks ago, for the remaining four years of the term, from January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2026. Prior to the deadline for receipt of letters of interest and the supporting information on October 28th, Mr. Carter received the required materials from three extremely well qualified candidates, all of which reside in District 5.
Superintendent Carter makes use of a Candidate Review Committee in making community college appointments. This is a process which engages a cross section of community members (an elected official, taxpayer, student, faculty member, and an individual with expertise in economic development) from that specific district, in reviewing the materials, preparing interview questions, deciding who to interview and in conducting and evaluating the interviews. The committee also provides him with insight about their collective perception of each candidate and they make very valuable recommendations for his consideration. The Superintendent and committee interviewed the three candidates on Thursday, November 11th
Mr. Carter then hosted two opportunities for the public to meet with him personally in face-to-face meetings the week of November 14th. He provided his email address and cell phone number for those individuals wishing to use one of those options. He spoke individually with the current Yavapai College Governing Board Members and college administration in person or on the phone prior to making the appointment. Sixty-three (63) residents communicated with the Superintendent in one manner or another about their preferences. He appreciated and respected the responses. Mr. Carter may be reached at 928.925.6560.
Yavapai College operates six campuses and centers throughout Yavapai County and offers over 100 degrees and certificates, student and community services, and cultural events and activities.
