Chris Fall

The Governing Board of the William S. Hart Union High School District has announced the process to fill one Board vacancy created by the Aug. 16 resignation of appointed member Chris Fall. The board will make an appointment from among qualified applicants for a four-year term. Chris Fall addressed the Hart Board last night and announced his decision to renounce his candidacy, leading the way for the board to fill the open position through an appointment process.

Fall filed for an open board seat in the local and municipal election that had been slated for November 5th. Fall and two incumbents, Joseph Messina and Robert Jensen Jr., were the only candidates who filed for the three open seats, negating the need for an election, according to the Los Angeles County Office of Education School District Organization / Elections Department. A letter received by the District on September 6, 2013 from the LA County Registrar-Recorder / County Clerk Office states that since no one else filed for candidacy, the election is cancelled, and all incumbents are deemed to be elected.

Applications to apply for the open board seat are available today. To be eligible to apply for appointment to the Governing Board, an individual must be at least 18 years old, be a resident of the William S. Hart Union High School District, be a registered voter in the State of California, and not be disqualified from holding civil office by the constitution or any law of the State of California.

Applications will be available on the District’s website (http://hartdistrict.org/files/docs/Application_Board_Member.pdf pdf_button) and at the Administrative Center, 21515 Centre Pointe Parkway, Santa Clarita, CA 91350. Return completed applications to the Superintendent’s Office, 21515 Centre Pointe Pkwy., Santa Clarita 91350 or email to Lorraine King at lking@hartdistrict.org , by the filing deadline of Wednesday, October 8, 2013 at 4 pm. For additional information, contact Mrs. King at 661.259.0033 x201.

Qualified applicants will be interviewed during public session at the October 16, 2013 board meeting and will be notified in writing the week before of their scheduled interview time and will be provided interview guidelines, instructions and interview questions. The outcome of the vote will be announced that evening following all candidate interviews.

This appointee will take the oath of office at the Organizational Board Meeting on December 11, 2013 and will hold the position for the four-year term. Messina and Jensen will also be sworn in for another term at that time.

An employee of the Hart School District may not be sworn into office as an elected or appointed member of the Governing Board, unless he or she resigns as an employee. If the employee does not resign, the employment will automatically terminate upon being sworn into office.

Fall had been appointed to a vacant board position in June, following the resignation of Paul Strickland in May, who moved out of state. He resigned in August due to a potential Section 1090 conflict of interest. The appointment was for the remainder of Strickland’s term, which concludes in December 2013. Prior to his resignation of the appointed seat, Fall had desired to continue on the school board in an elected capacity for a four-year term; however, with the renouncement of his candidacy last night, his vacant seat will be filled through this process.