School Board Member Resigns; Applicants Needed

Contributed by the City of Scotts Valley:

The Scotts Valley Unified Board of Trustees members met last week to discuss how to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of Debbie Johnson. In her resignation letter to County Superintendent Michael Watkins, Johnson cited health reasons for stepping down from the Board to which she was appointed in lieu of election on Dec. 5, 2012.

President Art Bubb led discussion for this agenda item by summarizing the Board’s two choices:  pecial election or provisional appointment. Due to the cost of a special election projected at $70,000, Board Member John Abel said, “This is a no-brainer. I’m in favor of a provisional appointment.” Members Michael Shulman and Sue Roth agreed in a unanimous decision to announce a provisional appointment application-selection process to fill the seat.

An informational memo to prospective candidates and the application for the Board seat has been posted to the District website. The application advises candidates that all materials submitted become public records and will be published on the website and available at a subsequent Board meeting. Interested individuals should submit an Application for Provisional Appointment no later than 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 30, 2013 to:

Penny Weaver, Superintendent
Scotts Valley Unified School District
4444 Scotts Valley Dr., Suite 5B
Scotts Valley, California, 95066
831-438-1820
pweaver@scottsvalleyusd.org 

Applicants are requested to attend the May 14 Board Meeting to participate in an interview process including a personal introduction and a brief (two to three minute) statement of interest in being appointed to the Board. The Board may take action to appoint the new trustee at the May 14 meeting or defer the decision to a future special session.

The Board meets at 6 p.m. on the second and fourth Tuesday of most months and occasionally in special sessions. There is no pay or compensation for serving on the Board. Any person is eligible to be a governing board member if he/she is 18 years of age or older, a citizen of the state, a resident of the school district, a registered voter, and not legally disqualified from holding civil office.

Once appointed by the Board of Trustees, the new trustee will serve until the next general board election, which is November 2014. The newly appointed trustee is afforded all the powers and duties of a Board member upon appointment.