District has four options to fill vacancies

Two Beacon school board members resigned this week, leaving the nine-member board with vacancies nearly a year before the next election.

Anthony White, the longest-tenured board member, and Kristan Flynn, who was serving her third full term, each said the Monday (Aug. 25) meeting was their last.

The Wallkill Central School District in Orange County announced in May that White, who was elected to the Beacon board in 2014 and was in the midst of his fourth 3-year term, will succeed Superintendent Kevin Castle, who is retiring in October. White has been the Wallkill district's assistant superintendent of educational services since 2021.

White said Monday that he hopes today's students will learn the value of volunteering. "I was always taught volunteerism gives back more than you give it, and it's true," he said. "I tried to give my all, but I got back 10 times fold."

Flynn, a market research executive, said that a new job she started last year has not left her with enough time to continue as a board member. "It's hard to feel half-in, half-out," she said. "I wanted to finish this term [which ends in May] but it's feeling like I'm stretched too thin."

In an email to the community on Tuesday, President Flora Stadler said the school board has four options, which it will discuss at its Sept. 8 meeting.

The board could leave the seats open until the election in May; make appointments to fill the seats until the election; ask Jodi DeLucia, the superintendent of the Dutchess Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), to make appointments until the election; or call a special election.

On Monday, Flynn, who was appointed in 2016 to fill a vacancy and elected for the first time in 2017, called the election process cleaner. "It sets you up for more success if someone is really interested in being on the board," she said. "They can come to meetings and get the feel for things and be a part of it before they're a part of it."

The board in 2020 was criticized by some community members who said it was not doing enough to diversify itself when appointing members to fill vacancies.

Appointing someone "becomes personal even if you don't want it to be personal," Flynn said. She noted that her appointment felt urgent at the time, but "everyone [on the board] is capable of bringing the work forward" now.

White was in his first term in 2016 when Barbara Walkley, the eighth superintendent to hold the job in 10 years, resigned. As a parent group, the Advocates for Beacon Schools, began organizing, White represented "a glimmer of hope that there was someone on the board who cared enough about kids and the impact on kids and teachers that gave our parent group the idea that we could actually make some change," said Meredith Heuer, the board's vice president.

Stadler also praised Flynn, who was a member of Advocates for Beacon Schools. In a time of uncertainty, "you brought clarity and data to the conversation, but you also had this insistence that things should and could be better," Stadler said. "We all know how much time and attention and emotional labor goes into doing this job. You've made this district better."

Superintendent Matt Landahl thanked White and Flynn, who were both board members (with White being the president) when he was hired in 2017.

"I would call Anthony about hiring stuff and budget stuff" during the transition, Landahl said, while he completed his duties in the Ithaca City School District. "But I would also be like, 'Who's your cable provider?' Because we weren't from here. That first president who you work with, you have a connection with because so much goes into that transition."

About Flynn, "the word that comes to my mind is the level of thoughtfulness that you bring," Landahl said. "When I say 'thoughtfulness,' I mean smart, deep thinking about every aspect of the community and the district and our kids and our staff. That was from Day 1 all the way to now."