The appointment of a school director to fill the unexpired term for Region 2, representing Northampton Borough and East Allen Township, was sent back to Northampton Area School District Board of Education for a decision.

In response, the school board had scheduled a special meeting for 6 p.m. May 8 in the auditorium at Northampton Area High School to consider the matter.

An announcement about the special meeting was posted May 3 by Craig Neiman, NASD board of education secretary, on the NASD website.

“The purpose of the meeting is to appoint a person who previously applied for the vacant board position in Region 2 - Northampton Borough and East Allen Township - on the Northampton Area School Board and for other general purposes,” the announcement read.

Northampton County President Judge Craig A. Dally announced his ruling during a 1 p.m. May 1 hearing in the Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County, Civil Division, held in Northampton County Courthouse Courtroom 1.

“It is hereby ordered and decreed that this matter is remanded to the Northampton Area School Board of School Directors for an additional 30 days to properly consider and vote on all qualified applicants for the current vacancy on the Northampton Area School District Board of Directors,” Dally said. “Should the board fail to fill the vacancy by June 3, the applications and/or resumes of all interested, and qualified, applicants shall be forwarded to the Office of the Northampton County Court Administrator for the court’s review and consideration.”

NASD school directors voted 8-0 at the March 11 board meeting to approve and accept a letter from Chuck Frantz to resign effective March 1. Frantz’s term representing Region 2 would have concluded Dec. 1, 2025.

Michael Buckley, Shelby Fabian, William Jones, Maggie Kemp, Nathan Lichtenwalner, Fran Shehab and Christine Steigerwalt were interviewed by the school board April 9. School directors nominated several applicants for the empty seat, but none received a majority vote of the eight-member board.

Dally noted a review of the April 9 meeting recording showed multiple school board members abstaining without much explanation.

“Based upon the board’s policy manual, there are very few instances when a director should abstain and, if necessary, a director should verbally disclose their reasoning for abstaining,” Dally reported. “Thus, the court directs the board to vote on this matter with no abstentions, except for good cause, in accordance with the board policy manual.”

According to the NASD board policy manual, a school director “shall be required to abstain from voting” when the issue involves a conflict of interest under the Ethics Act, a conflict of interest involving a family member or associated business. If a conflict of interest under the Ethics Act, the director should verbally and publicly disclose the conflict for the record.

At the start of the May 1 hearing, Dally noted three petitions were received. Those petitioning for appointment were Jones, Kemp and Steigerwalt, who all attended the May 1 hearing. Shehab and Lichtenwalner, who said he had the required number of signatures to file his petition, were also in attendance.

Also at the hearing were school board Vice President Kristin Soldridge and Directors Brian McCulloch and John Becker; former school directors Chuck Frantz, Robert Mentzell, Geraldine Skrapits and Ted Fritz; and Atty. John E. Freund III and Atty. Avery E. Smith, both of King Spry Herman Freund and Faul, representing NASD.

Steigerwalt was represented by Atty. Richard Eugene Santee, of Shay, Santee, Kelhart and Deschler LLC.

“The judge made it clear. It goes back to the school board,” said Santee after the court hearing.

Section 315 of the Pennsylvania Public School Code, cited in Dally’s decree, pertains to filling a vacancy on a board of school directors:

“If, by reason of a tie vote or otherwise, such vacancy shall not have been filled by the board of school directors within 30 days after such vacancy shall have occurred from the qualified electors of the district, the court of common pleas of the proper county, upon the petition of 10 or more resident taxpayers, shall fill such vacancy by the appointment of a suitable person from the qualified electors of the district if the term of the vacant office so long continues, until the first Monday of December after the first municipal election occurring more than 60 days after the vacancy shall have occurred.”

The board of education holds its regular monthly meeting 6:30 p.m. May 13 in the auditorium at NAHS, 1619 Laubach Ave., Northampton.