West York board appoints Chad Dierdorf to replace departing director after split vote

The West York Area School District board accepted the resignation of Director Kohler and appointed Chad Dierdorf to fill the vacant seat after a roll-call vote that carried 6 to 2.

Why it matters: The appointment fills a local elected seat until the next election and drew debate at the board table over whether the vacancy-selection process should have been reopened to additional applicants.

What happened

The board first voted to accept the resignation of Director Kohler (motion and second recorded; board approved by voice vote). The board then nominated and voted to appoint Chad Dierdorf to the seat vacated by Kohler.

On the roll call for Dierdorf’s appointment the vote was: Yes — Director Geddes, Director Myers, Director Harlacher, Director Dugan, Vice President Hamm and President Rice; No — Director Herman and Director Schoep. The board chair swore in Dierdorf immediately following the vote.

Process dispute

Several board members objected to how the appointment was handled. Director Herman and others said a prior public statement indicated the board would reopen the application window to allow more candidates; they said some trustees instead discussed and reached a decision outside the full board before the meeting. Herman said she felt “robbed of that opportunity” to participate in an open process and said she would vote no for that reason. Other trustees said they had interviewed candidates recently and believed Dierdorf was the clear second-place finisher and that the two candidates who had earlier signaled they would run deserved priority consideration.

Ending note

Dierdorf took the oath of office at the meeting. The board did not change its vacancy-selection policy at the meeting, and trustees who objected said they would raise process concerns separately.