PHOTO PROVIDED The Keystone Central School District Board of Directors are pictured during its special voting meeting to appoint a candidate to the vacant Region IV seat.

MILL HALL — The Keystone Central School District Board of Directors ultimately terminated its efforts to appoint one of three candidates to its open Region IV seat and adjourned a special voting session after failing to come to a consensus.

Prior to the voting session, the board held a special meeting Thursday night to interview three potential candidates for the seat: Kevin Ferrara, Jason Smith and Heather Yost.

Each candidate was asked questions by the board regarding a variety of topics including their greatest achievements, community service and outreach initiatives, giving examples on how they’ve worked with those of differing viewpoints, what they felt was a priority for the board outside of budgetary and financial responsibilities, how they would communicate with constituents and their budgetary experience.

When the voting session took place, the board began by choosing one candidate each, with the understanding four or more votes were needed for a singular candidate to be appointed. Otherwise, voting could continue until a consensus was reached.

During the first round of voting Ferrara received three votes from members Elisabeth Lynch, John Miller and Shelby Bohartz; Smith received two votes from members Manny Rodriguez and Chris Scaff and no votes were made for Yost. Board member Dr. Bill Baldino did not vote for any candidates presented.

He noted, during the candidate interviews, none referenced the importance of focusing on students’ educations within the district.

“This is about education,” he said, noting he’d rather the board continue to search for candidates that would better fit.

The next round was narrowed to Ferrara and Smith.

Prior to the second vote, board members spoke about the candidates they felt were right for the position.

Miller said he felt Ferrara’s budgetary experience and other qualifications would make him the right fit for the position, noting he could “hit the ground running.”

“We have very important stuff coming up,” he noted, saying experience was important.

Rodriguez and Scaff both said many of their constituents had reached out to them in recent weeks stating they were interested in other candidates.

Scaff said he received a number of correspondents, even while the meeting took place, in which residents in his region were interested in Smith being appointed.

“This board and our entire school district has so much division,” he said. “(Jason) stays neutral.”

He noted he did research into Smith and his use of social media, saying he never commented or offered his opinions on public platforms.

This was compounded by the number of people in his region who were in favor of Smith, leading to his vote.

He added Smith’s involvement in community and his local church as another reason why he was in favor of him.

Rodriguez said he spoke with a number of constituents in his region, sometimes while going door to door, and they spoke in favor of Smith.

“John, I agree with you. Mr. Ferrara has experience. I also like where Jason is coming from,” he said. “But I have to listen to the people I represent and most of them want me to vote a different way.”

He added, when he was interviewed for the Region III seat, he was asked how he would represent his constituents. He emphasized this was his way of keeping to his promise of representation.

Bohartz said she’d heard favorably for Ferrara from constituents in her region.

“The ones who have come to talk to me were in favor of Kevin. I voted where I’ve been told in my region,” she said.

Lynch said since joining the board in 2019 she’s felt an asset is data and numbers.

“I do not make decisions based on people’s feelings. I listen and I take that into consideration,” she acknowledged. “So far since this process started I haven’t had a person speak against Mr. Ferrara.”

She further stated those who spoke to her in her region questioned why he hadn’t been appointed during the first round of interviews, when he was the only candidate to apply before the deadline.

The second round of votes ended with three for Ferrara (Bohartz, Lynch and Miller) and two for Smith (Rodriguez and Scaff). Baldino did not vote for a candidate.

During the vote, Baldino reiterated his concerns.

“I think they’re both impressive,” he said of Ferrara and Smith.

However, he said he was concerned about the direction in which the board was going, in that it seemed to not be focusing on the students and their education when making the decision Thursday night.

Following another failed appointment, Baldino motioned to terminate the procedure and adjourn the meeting. This was seconded by Scaff.

The motion was approved in a 4-2 vote with Baldino, Scaff, Bohartz and Rodriguez voting yes and Lynch and Miller voting no.

With the 30 day period in which the board may appoint a candidate up on Jan. 29, voters within Region IV may petition the Clinton County Court of Common Pleas to appoint someone per the Pennsylvania School Code.

The code indicates that, if a board fails to act on an appointment, residents may petition the court of common pleas to appoint someone.

The petition must be signed by at least 10 resident taxpayers from the district in the region with a vacancy. Once filed, a judge would review the eligibility of candidates and appoint someone until the next election cycle. The Region IV seat has two more years until it will be up for election.

However, per the school code, the board may still continue to put out the call for applicants to be interviewed. This process would be stopped if a judge appoints a candidate beforehand.