After serving seven years on the Coupeville School Board, Deborah Turner announced her resignation during Monday night’s meeting.

Turner, whose term on the Coupeville School Board is up in 2009, will continue to serve until Oct. 31, which will provide enough time for school officials to find a replacement.

Turner said she is dealing with health issues that require her to resign from the school board.

“Absolutely the hardest thing to do is step aside,” Turner said in an interview after the meeting. Her two children, Leah and Kent, both graduated from Coupeville High School.

One of her proudest accomplishments as a school board member was the completion of the new high school last year.

“I’d like to see the school district be successful and grow,” Turner said, recommending that it continue to collaborate with the island’s two other school districts.

Her territory covers the south end of the Coupeville School District around Greenbank.

Turner’s eventual successor will be appointed and serve on the board until the next general election, which in this case would be November 2009. That happens to be the end of Turner’s term.