 |
Ask the Superintendent - Aug.
23, 2006
On August 7th, Marty Knapp, Board of Education
member, Village of Goshen Police Officer, Dare
Officer for 12 years, and School Resource Officer,
submitted his resignation from the Board of
Education effective September 1, 2006. True to form,
Officer Marty, as he is affectionately called by
many of the Goshen students, was a major contributor
at his last Board meeting on Monday, August 21st.
During the last two years, many questions arose as
to whether there was a conflict of interest for
Marty Knapp to be a member of the Board of Education
and to “work” in our schools. There never was a
conflict of interest because Marty was never an
employee of the school district. His salary was
totally paid for through the Village of Goshen.
During this summer, Officer Marty’s assignment
changed and a portion of his salary was now going to
be supplemented by the school district for his role
as a School Resource Officer. It became apparent a
choice was in the offering. Marty had to decide:
1. Remain a School Resource Officer and resign from
the Board of Education;
2. Remain a Board of Education member and resign as
the School Resource Officer, and assume a different
assignment as a Village of Goshen Police Officer.
It obviously was a difficult choice, because for the
past couple of years Marty was a major
resource in our school buildings as well as a
valuable member of the Board of Education. Being
faced with this decision, Marty opted to resign his
seat on the Board of Education and stay with the
“kids.” He certainly will be missed as a Board
member because he offered important insight in the
areas of security, safety and clarity of thinking,
all of which were brought about as a result of his
many years of police experience.
Marty had ten months remaining in his three-year
term of office. His resignation has left the Board
with three options:
1. The Board may call for a special election to fill
his seat. This would be exactly the same as the
election of Board of Education Members and the
Annual Budget Vote during the third Tuesday each
May. It would require posting four legal notices,
filing candidacy petitions and setting aside a day
for a special election to fill what would then be
approximately eight months of office.
2. The Board of Education can appoint any resident
in the community who meets the legal eligibility
requirements to fill the open seat:
a. Must be able
to read and write;
b. Must be a qualified voter of the district;
that is, a citizen of the United States, at
least 18 years of age or older, and not adjudged
to be incompetent;
c. Must be and have been a resident (but need
not be a taxpayer) of the district for a
continuous and uninterrupted period of at least
one year immediately before the election;
d. May not have been removed from any school
district office within the preceding year;
e. May not reside in the same household with
another member of the same school board of
education;
f. May not be a current employee of the school
board; and,
g. May not simultaneously hold another
incompatible public office. (School Law, 30th
Edition, 2004)
3. The vacant seat
may be left unfilled until the next scheduled
election in May of 2007.
All three of these possibilities were discussed at
the public Board of Education meeting held on
Monday, August 21st. Each of these options has
advantages and disadvantages. At the meeting,
members of the Board expressed strong convictions
about spending budgeted funds and concerns about
usurping the public’s right to elect members to the
Board of Education. They decided to take two weeks
to carefully examine each possibility and will make
a final determination at the regularly scheduled
Board of Education meeting on September 5th.
I personally know how difficult this decision was
for Marty. His presence as a Board member will
certainly be missed, but fortunately he still
remains with our District and will continue to help
our students in other ways.
Roy Reese
Superintendent of Schools
|
|
