CLEARFIELD – A special meeting was held by the Clearfield Area School Board Monday night during which it selected someone to fill the seat left vacant after the passing of Larry Putt.
There were 10 candidates who submitted letters for the vacancy and eight of those individuals attended the meeting to introduce themselves and briefly address the board members.
Superintendent Terry Struble, who has been Clearfield’s top leader since 2013, stated he has never seen so much interest for an open seat.
Struble and board President Greg Clarke both encouraged those interested to put in their names to run for a position in the 2023 election and in future elections and be part of the process, noting that normally the candidates run unopposed, so there is room for more people to run for the seats.
“I was stunned when I saw how many citizens were interested,” Clarke remarked. Later he added that this is how citizens take ownership of their government as well as the education of our children.
After the candidate introductions, the board members were then able to nominate candidates for consideration.
Possible candidates included Derek Walker, Eric Cummings, Dr. Tina Serafini, Jennifer Evans, Rick Mattern, Timothy Duke, Craig Brady and Paul Dietzel.
Board member Phil Carr then confirmed with the solicitor that the candidate chosen would need to have a least four votes after a motion is made and seconded.
Board member Gail Ralston then motioned for Evans to be appointed with Mary Anne Jackson seconding the motion.
Four members in total voted in favor of Evans and nominations were then closed as she had received the needed majority vote.
Tim Morgan, who is a public notary, administered the oath of office to Evans, who was then seated.
Evans is retired from the Department of Corrections after 25 years as a counselor and said she sees problem solving skills and communication as important tools to keep everyone, including students, moving in the right direction.
Again, Clarke asked those who had expressed interest to remain part of the process, noting that Putt’s seat would have been up for re-election in a year. Additionally, Morgan noted that he will only be serving one more year.