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Lake Wales Charter Trustees discuss midyear board vacancies; trustees nominate TJ McKeehan for seat 7 amid procedural questions
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Summary
Trustees reviewed procedures to fill two midterm vacancies (seats 7 and 8), nominated Dr. T.J. McKeehan for seat 7 and agreed to collect more nominations for seat 8. Board counsel later advised that a public-notice requirement means any appointment must be ratified at a later posted meeting.
Trustees of Lake Wales Charter Schools discussed how to fill two midyear vacancies on the board and submitted nominees for seat 7 and seat 8, with a motion to appoint Dr. T.J. McKeehan to seat 7 carried by vote during the business meeting.
Board members spent the work session and business meeting clarifying the unexpired terms for the vacancies and the process for filling them. Trustee Lori Hutto read the relevant bylaw language on vacancies, saying any vacancy “may be filled by the affirmative vote of a majority of the trustees at a regular or special meeting” and that “a trustee selected to fill a vacancy shall be elected for the unexpired term of such person's predecessor.” She noted seat 7 would run through June 30, 2028, and seat 8 through June 30, 2026.
Trustees submitted names. Multiple trustees said they nominated Dr. T.J. McKeehan for seat 7; Trustee Marburg, Trustee Blair and Trustee Marvitt each said they had put his name forward. Trustee Blair said he also had proposed other candidates for the seats, including a Chamber of Commerce official and local attorney Sarah Jones as an alternate nominee for seat 8. Trustees agreed that nominees’ résumés would be circulated before the next board meeting.
During the business meeting, Trustee Marvitt moved to nominate Dr. T.J. McKeehan for seat 7; the motion was seconded and the roll call vote recorded as yes by Trustees Blair, Marvitt, Hutto, Stewart and Johnson. The chair announced the motion carried.
After that vote, board counsel Sean Arnold advised trustees that the appointment had not been noticed as an agenda item for public comment and that state open-meetings requirements ordinarily require public notice and the opportunity for comment before seating a new trustee. Arnold said that, in his experience, boards that proceeded without the required notice risked enforcement action and that the appointment should be ratified at a later posted meeting so the appointee could be seated without procedural risk.
Trustees responded that they would prepare proper agenda language and bring any appointments for ratification at the November 17 meeting. Marie (board staff) said she would collect résumés and requested any additional names for seat 8 be submitted by October 25 so staff could assemble candidate materials.
What this means going forward: seat 7 was nominated and the motion carried in the business meeting, but counsel advised the body to place the item on a posted agenda so the public can comment and the board can ratify the appointment at its next meeting. Seat 8 will be filled for its unexpired term through June 30, 2026; trustees agreed to accept additional nominations and to work with the SAC nomination process later this cycle for the longer-term selection for that seat.
Trustees repeatedly distinguished between a board appointment (seat 7, board-chosen) and a SAC/committee seat (seat 8) that will be filled in accordance with the bylaws and SAC nominations when the term ends.
Ending paragraph: The board set a timetable for follow-up: staff will circulate candidate materials prior to the November 17 meeting, trustees will submit any additional nominees for seat 8 by Oct. 25, and counsel will help ensure the ratification and seating language is posted so the board can act at its next meeting without procedural challenge.
