Washington County delegation amends school board vacancies bill

Proposal would give authority to commissioners, with input from community

March 06, 2008|By ANDREW SCHOTZ

ANNAPOLIS - A tug-of-war over who should fill school board vacancies that played out Wednesday in Annapolis might have a cordial resolution.

Del. LeRoy E. Myers Jr., R-Washington/Allegany, said the county's General Assembly delegation was "blindsided" Tuesday when the school board requested to revamp a bill on how vacancies should be filled.

Currently, the governor appoints people to fill a Washington County Board of Education vacancy.

The delegation bill calls for appointment power to shift to the Washington County Commissioners.

The school board, however, said Tuesday, through a unanimous vote, that it wants that authority.

Board member Bernadette Wagner said she thought it made sense because the county commissioners fill their own vacancies. Actually, that duty is the governor's.

Board President Roxanne Ober said in a phone interview Wednesday that the concern was about the selection process, not the appointment power.

She said the board voted to give itself the authority so it could then write a policy for efficiently filling vacancies.

Ober took responsibility for the school board's late reaction to the delegation bill, more than a month after it was filed. She and the board were focused on other issues, she said.

The debate over the bill prompted Sen. Donald F. Munson, R-Washington, to suggest that the delegation kill the bill this year and try next year.

But the bill survived when Del. Christopher B. Shank, R-Washington, suggested an amendment to address the process, keeping the appointment authority with the county commissioners.

Delegation members agreed, without opposition, to incorporate an outline of the process into the bill.

Various segments of the community would be part of a selection committee, the same model used for filling the last few school board vacancies.

Ober said she could support the bill with that approach. The school board probably will discuss the new draft to reconsider whether to support it, she said.

Myers has said the bill was designed to prevent a long delay.

When Doris J. Nipps resigned in 2002, it took about four months from the time a selection committee formed until then-Gov. Robert Ehrlich appointed a replacement.

Delegation members wondered Wednesday how the school board's requested change would affect the bill.

Myers said there was a chance the bill could have been stonewalled if the school board, as a body, didn't support it. He and a Ways and Means subcommittee chair talked about the possibility of relying on previous letters of support he had from individual board members.

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