ASHLAND — The Ashland City Schools Board of Education swore in Tom Hart Monday night to fill a vacant seat.
The seat, vacated by former board member Rob Wash, attracted six applicants over two separate application periods, according to a public records request.
Wash announced he planned to step down from the board in March. He resigned due to a conflict of interest. The board opened applications to fill his seat from March 25 to April 19. When it did, it advertised the applicant who’d fill the seat would serve the rest of Wash’s term.
That information, however, was incorrect. A person who fills a vacancy will hold office for the shorter of two periods, according to a voter guide from the Ohio Secretary of State:
- Until completion of the unexpired term.
- Until the first day of January following the next regular board of education election taking place more than 90 days after a person is selected to fill the vacancy.
Board president John Teevan announced, after discovering the error, the board would reopen its application period. The second application period spanned May 13 to 24.
Teevan said he called each person who had already applied to tell them about the error and let them know their applications would still be considered.
Five of the six applicants applied during the first period. Hart applied during the second period, according to documents obtained via Ashland Source‘s public records request.
Selecting a candidate
Pam Mowry, the board’s vice president, said the board looked at and met with every candidate who wanted to be interviewed. Email correspondence between board president Teevan and candidates shows each candidate received an invitation to interview for the open seat.
Mowry said Hart rose to the top “in terms of lots of things,” pointing specifically to Hart’s business background as important.
Hart said Monday he applied to fill the vacant seat after somebody encouraged him. He worked for 37 years as a vice president at Core & Main. According to its website, Core & Main is “a leading specialized distributor of water, wastewater, storm drainage and fire protection products, and related services.”
Hart, now retired, said he volunteers for the Footpath Foundation in Cleveland, along with the Cleveland Print Room.
With his service on the board, he wants to help the community and support the school district’s mission. In his eyes, that mission consists of helping students be successful.
“My outlook is to help others, be the best you can be, be humble and have fun,” Hart said.
He said he hopes he can bring that outlook to the board. Hart added he doesn’t plan to run again, but that 18 months is a long time, and that plan could change.
