Council selects Hergenroeder for school board
David Hergenroeder is the newest member of the Madison Board of Education. (CONTRIBUTED)
MADISON – Madison City Council has named David Hergenroeder to the Madison Board of Education.
Hergenroeder fills the slot opened by Phil Schmidt’s resignation.
Educating our children is one of a parent’s — and society’s — most important responsibilities, Hergenroeder said. The school system is one advantage of living in Madison, and his children have benefited from quality education.
He believes serving on the school board is a way to give back to the community. “As an engineer and a strategic planner, I feel that I can add a different perspective to the talents and qualities already present on the board,” Hergenroeder said.
“The Madison City Schools system is in great shape; everyone should be proud of where we are and where we’re headed. But we need to maintain that azimuth of improving all the time,” he said.
Hergenroeder believes one challenge is “keeping very high standards across the entire system now (for) two high schools in Madison. With only one high school, it was a little easier. We don’t want a ‘Bob Jones system’ and a ‘James Clemens system.'”
Since 2010, Hergenroeder has worked as a senior analyst for the Missile Defense Agency. He formerly was program manager for Radiance Technologies Inc, held positions with Quantum Research International and was senior strategic planner for Chief of Staff of the Army, among numerous military appointments.
His wife Melanie served in the Army reserve while raising their children. In 2004, the Hergenroeders moved to Madison when he retired from the U.S. Army. Their children are John, a computer analyst in Chicago; Laura, a University of Alabama senior; and David, who will enter Yale University this fall.
In community volunteering, he has served as a Scout leader, soccer and basketball coach, band and track booster and school district committee member.
He earned a bachelor’s degree at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and master’s degrees at the University of Washington and National Defense University in Washington D.C. Hergenroeder taught mechanical engineering at West Point.
