Pottsgrove board appoints Stacy Herbert to fill vacant seat after public interviews
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Summary
After public interviews with six candidates, the Pottsgrove School District board narrowed the field by straw poll and voted to appoint Stacy Herbert to a seat running through November 2025; the appointee must take the oath before a notary to be eligible to vote.
The Pottsgrove School District Board of School Directors on Monday appointed Stacy Herbert to fill a vacant board seat that runs through November 2025 after publicly interviewing six candidates.
Board members held public interviews with six applicants, asking three prepared questions of each candidate and allowing follow-up questions. The board used a straw-poll process to narrow the field to two finalists, then held a second tally using a two-vote-per-member method. That tally produced 16 total votes; Herbert received the most and the board moved to appoint her. A motion to appoint Herbert was made and approved by the board.
The interviews were conducted on the record. Several candidates described local involvement and priorities: Casey Fanolio, director of community engagement at a local hospital, emphasized behavioral health supports and workforce development; Fanolio told the board she wants to “remove those barriers” that keep students from accessing opportunities. Stacy Herbert told the board she has served in PTA leadership and local volunteer roles and said she wants to “advocate for the students, the parents and the teachers.”
Board members debated giving new appointees experience versus selecting a candidate already on the ballot. One board member said the hospital and behavioral-health experience Fanolio described aligned with district conversations about mental-health supports; another member said Herbert’s steady local involvement and presence at committee meetings argued for continuity. Two board members volunteered to speak on behalf of each finalist during a tied stage of the process.
The board then used a formal confirmation motion; the motion to appoint Herbert passed. The board’s solicitor noted that under state law the oath of office administered outside the annual organizational meeting must be given by a notary public. Because a notary was not present at the meeting, Herbert was asked to take the oath of office before a notary the next day; she will not be eligible to vote until she is sworn.
Board members thanked all six candidates for participating, encouraged unsuccessful finalists to remain engaged, and welcomed Herbert to the board pending completion of the notary-administered oath. The seat is scheduled to be decided by voters in the November 2025 municipal election and then filled by the successful candidate in December, per the district’s regular election cycle.
The board’s recorded discussion and the straw-poll counts show the process the board used to reach its decision; the board did not adopt additional policy language or other binding action beyond the appointment at the meeting.
Herbert is expected to take the oath before a notary and then assume full duties, including voting, once that administrative requirement is satisfied.
