Kansas City Kansas Public Schools, school board vacancies (2015)
Two vacancies on the Kansas City Kansas Public Schools Board of Education occurred in 2015. These vacancies were created by the resignation of member Victoria Meyer and the death of member George Breidenthal. Irene Caudillo, an unsuccessful candidate in the 2015 board election, was appointed to replace Meyer. Reverend Rick Behrens was appointed to replace Breidenthal.
Method of filling board vacancies
Vacancies on the Kansas public school board are governed by state law, which provides for the remaining members of the board to appoint a new member. When a vacancy occurs, the board is required to publish a notice in a general circulation newspaper in the district. The notice states the vacancy and says that it will not be filled any sooner than 15 days following the notice's publication.[1]
The appointed member serves the remainder of the unexpired term of the seat unless the remaining unexpired term is longer than two years. If the latter, the appointee serves until the next general school board election, at which point the remainder of the unexpired term appears as a separate special election next to the general election ticket.[1]
Beyond those requirements, the process for making the appointment is up to the school district. In order to be qualified, candidates must be residents of the district, submit an application and be interviewed by the board.
Vacancies
Victoria Meyer resignation
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After 18 years on the board, Meyer resigned due to health concerns in May 2015.[2] The board released its public notice of the vacancy on May 12, 2015.[3]
Interested candidates had to submit an application including a statement of interest and their resume to the Clerk of the Board of Education Susan Westfahl by June 15, 2015. Seven candidates applied to fill Meyer's seat: sitting board member Christal Watson; spring election candidates Irene Caudillo, Korri Hall-Thompson, Janey Humphries and Maria Ysaac; and Nancy Browne and Jill Hershberger. They were interviewed by a panel on June 18, 2015. Watson had not run for re-election in 2015, as she was seeking a seat on the Unified Government Commission in that election cycle. She decided to seek the remainder of Meyer's unexpired term to stay on the board.[4]
The board was scheduled to make an appointment that night but did not do so. Only five members of the board could vote on the appointment; Meyer had already left the board, and Watson had to recuse herself as she applied to fill the vacancy. In order to make an appointment, four of the five board members voting on the matter had to agree on the candidate. Four ballots were cast by the board, but none of the votes met the requirement.[4]
The board met again on June 23, 2015, and approved the appointment of Irene Caudillo to the remainder of Meyer's unexpired term in a 5-0 vote. Board member Watson removed herself from the candidate list prior to the vote and cast her vote in favor of Caudillo. While Watson rejoined the board for the vote, the death of Breidenthal on the same day meant that only five board members voted upon the appointment.[5]
Meyer's term was set to expire in 2017. Since the unexpired term left on her seat was less than two years, Caudillo's appointment ran until the end of the term on July 1, 2017.
George Breidenthal death
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Breidenthal was first elected to the board in 1983 and served until his death on June 23, 2015. He had recently won re-election to a new term on April 7, 2015; he was the second highest vote recipient in the at-large election.
The district published its notice of vacancy for the position on August 31, 2015. Interested district residents had until September 18, 2015, to submit their applications. Written responses from the candidates were due on September 30, 2015. The board interviewed candidates and appointed Reverend Rick Behrens to replace Breidenthal at a special meeting on October 19, 2015.[6] If agreement on an appointment had not been reached at the special meeting, the board would have had to vote on the matter again at the next regular meeting on October 22, 2015.[7]
Breidenthal's recent re-election meant that almost an entire term in his seat remained. Any unexpired term lasting more than two year is subject to a special election at the board's next general election. Behrens appointment to Breidenthal's seat ran until the 2017 election, when a special election was held for the remaining two years of the term at that time.
About the district
Kansas City Kansas Public Schools is located in Kansas City, the county seat of Wyandotte County, in northeastern Kansas. The county was home to an estimated 160,384 residents in 2013, according to the United States Census Bureau.[8] Kansas City Kansas Public Schools was the fifth-largest school district by enrollment in Kansas and served 20,914 students in the 2012-2013 school year.[9]
Demographics
Wyandotte County underperformed compared to the rest of Kansas in terms of higher education achievement, median household income and poverty rate in 2013. The United States Census Bureau found that 15.5 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 30.3 percent for Kansas as a whole. The median household income in Wyandotte County was $39,402, compared to $51,332 for the state. The poverty rate in the county was 23.9 percent, while the state as a whole had a poverty rate of 13.7 percent.[8]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
See also
| Kansas | School Board Elections | News and Analysis |
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Kansas City Kansas Public Schools |
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Kansas State Legislature, "Article 20. - School District Elections," accessed September 23, 2015
- ↑ Wyandotte Daily Online, "KCK school district seeks new board member after resignation," June 1, 2015
- ↑ Kansas City Kansas Public Schools, "Board Vacancy notice: At-Large Member to Fill Vacancy for the Remainder of the Unexpired Term," May 12, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Wyandotte Daily Online, "Candidates interviewed for KCK school board appointment; none selected today," June 18, 2015
- ↑ Wyandotte Daily Online, "Caudillo chosen for open KCK school board position," June 24, 2015
- ↑ Margaret Koenig, "Phone call with Susan Westfall, Kansas City Kansas Public Schools Board of Education Secretary," October 20, 2015
- ↑ BoardDocs Pro: Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools, "Proposed Timeline to Fill At-Large Board Vacancy," August 27, 2015
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 United States Census Bureau, "Wyandotte County, Kansas," accessed December 30, 2014
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed April 15, 2015
- ↑ Wyandotte County/Kansas City Unified Government, "Election Results," accessed December 30, 2014
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