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Scranton School District board fills vacancy after tie-breaker draw; new member sworn in
Summary
After three interviews and multiple 4-4 votes, the Scranton School District board used a tie-breaker drawing to decide the appointee to a vacant board seat. The candidate drawn from the hat — identified at the meeting as Jenna (surname transcribed variously in the record) — was ultimately appointed by a 5-3 roll-call vote and sworn in.
The Scranton School District Board of Directors appointed a candidate identified at the meeting as Jenna to fill a board vacancy after a tie-breaking draw and a final 5-3 roll-call vote.
The special meeting was convened to interview three vetted applicants and to allow each two minutes for a public statement. Superintendent Nikkeem explained the interview process and said board members had a rubric to score candidates, and that only the circled name would be submitted for tabulation by the board secretary, Miss Orr. Candidates who addressed the board included Kara Kofira, Carol Cleary and Jenna (last name recorded inconsistently in the transcript). The interviews covered motivations for serving, board responsibilities, handling public scrutiny and disclosure under District Policy 304.1 on nepotism.
Board members discussed the candidates publicly after interviews, as the district policy requires. The board recorded two tied roll-call results during the selection process: a 4-4 tie between Carol Cleary and the candidate drawn from the hat, and a separate 4-4 failure on a motion to appoint Cleary. The board then used the process described in policy — placing tied names into a hat and drawing order — and proceeded to vote on the candidate whose name was drawn. After subsequent ballots and discussion, a final roll-call vote produced five affirmative votes and three negative votes; the motion carried and the appointed candidate was sworn in during the meeting.
Board members who spoke during the meeting included President Holmes and directors Borthwick, Casey, Chezick, Fox, Merkel, McAndrew, and Yani. Miss Orr handled ballot tabulation and roll call. Attorney Hazeltyne read the policy language on the tie-breaking procedure; a WNEP media representative drew the name from the hat.
The board emphasized that each nominee met vetting requirements and that the selected appointee will be brought up to speed by Director McAndrew and others over the coming week. The board noted an election is scheduled in May, meaning the appointee will serve until the elected term begins or until the electorate decides otherwise.
Votes and next steps: the final roll call was announced as 5 affirmative and 3 negative; the newly appointed member was asked to come forward to be sworn in immediately. President Holmes and director McAndrew offered to work with the appointee this week to provide orientation and materials.
The board also reminded the public that written votes are a matter of record and that right-to-know requests can obtain a full vote record.
Ending note: The appointment process followed the district policy steps described at the meeting (interviews, public deliberation, and tie-break procedure). The district indicated the newly sworn director will begin orientation promptly and will be seated at the next regular meeting.
