9221

Bylaws of the Board
Method of Filling Vacancies
Pursuant to 2-31(c) of the Charter of the Town of Newtown:

If a vacancy occurs in the office of any member of the local Board of Education, then the successor shall be determined by:

A majority vote of the remaining members of the same political party of the former member provided said vote occurs within 45 days of vacancy;
A majority vote of the remaining members regardless of party affiliation after 45 days.
Should the vacancy still not be filled after 90 days, then the current Chair of the Board of Education shall appoint the successor
Should all seats on the Board of Education become simultaneously vacant, then a special election shall be called to fill all seats
Any successor(s) so appointed shall serve until the next regular town election for Board of Education positions, at which election a successor shall be elected for the unexpired portion of the term, the official ballot specifying the vacancy to be filled.

In the event of a discrepancy between the Charter and this Policy, the Charter shall take precedence.

During the first 45 days of the vacancy, the remaining members of the same political party as the former member may choose to hold formal interviews. If they choose to do so, the decision to include Board of Education members of other political affiliations will be left to their discretion.

Board Officer Vacancies

Whenever there is a vacancy in the Office of Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, or Secretary, the Board shall elect a new officer to fill the vacancy for the unexpired term of office once a full Board is seated.

Prior to the seating of the full Board, meetings will be chaired as set forth in policy 9100. If all three Board officer positions are vacant but a quorum of the Board still exists, regularly scheduled meetings will proceed at the beginning of which the remaining members will elect a temporary chair by majority vote.

Once the full Board has been seated, the Town Clerk will serve as temporary chairperson to elect a chairperson, as outlined in Policy 9100 – Officers/Organization Meeting of the Board. Any other vacant Board Officer positions will then be filled as outlined in the same policy.

Legal Reference: Connecticut General Statutes
7-107 Vacancy appointments by selectmen.
9-204 Minority representation on boards of education.
10-219 Procedure for filling vacancy on board of education.
10-156e Employees of boards of education permitted to serve as elected officials; exception.
10-232 Restriction on employment of members of the board of education.
Town Charter, 2-40(c)

Adopted: 6/5/12
Revised: 10/15/19, 10/13/23