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Franklin Area School District board seats Alicia Hartzfield after deadlock resolved by coin toss
Summary
After multiple roll-call rounds produced a 4–4 deadlock, the Franklin Area School District Board resolved the tie with a public coin toss; Alicia Hartzfield won and was sworn in to the vacant seat for a term ending November 2027.
The Franklin Area School District Board of School Directors broke a weeks-long vacancy deadlock on May 18, 2026, by resolving a tied vote with a public coin toss and then formally appointing Alicia Hartzfield to the board.
Board members nominated three candidates for the open seat: Ron Richberg, Alicia Hartzfield and Dr. Don Stein. The board held multiple roll-call votes after closing nominations; no candidate reached the five votes required for appointment and voting repeatedly resulted in a stalemate. After discussion of next steps and legal guidance on tie-breaking methods, the board voted to decide the matter by a random method.
The president of the board conducted the coin flip in public. The toss resulted in Hartzfield being selected; the board then made a motion to appoint her to the vacant seat, the motion was seconded and carried. Hartzfield took the oath of office at the meeting and was seated for a term through November 2027.
Why it matters: The method—resolving a board appointment by coin toss—was explicitly authorized by the board after consulting a procedural opinion from the Pennsylvania School Boards Association that listed random selection (coin toss, drawing straws, etc.) among reasonable tie-breaking options when no prior process is agreed.
What to watch next: The board will assign Hartzfield to committees and she will participate as a voting member for upcoming budget and operational decisions.
Quote: “I, Alicia Hartsville, do solemnly swear…,” Hartzfield said while repeating the oath of office as administered by the board secretary and then took the seat amid applause.
Provenance: The nomination, deadlock, legal guidance, coin toss and administration of the oath were all recorded in the board’s public meeting transcript (nominations begin at the item for school board director; coin toss and oath are recorded later in the meeting).
