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PARKERSBURG - Former board member Rick Olcott has been named the interim board member for the Wood County Board of Education with a 3-1 vote.
Board member Sarah Townsend voted for Brian Stanley.
The board met in special session Monday to appoint someone to fill the vacancy left when Debbie Hendershot stepped down Jan. 30 to run for Wood County magistrate. Olcott will sit on the board until a special election is held in November.
"This was a very tough decision," Board President Justin Raber said. "We had seven amazing applicants, and every applicant brought a different perspective. And I can't thank you enough for coming forward and putting your name out."
The board selected Olcott from the eight applications they received and after giving each candidate a 25-minute interview. Those who submitted an application included Jane Burdette, Randall Modesitt and Thomas Smith from District A; and Olcott, Mary Beth Shultz, Stanley, Chad Conley and Bradley Winans from District C.
During public comment, Conley, who is on the ballot for the May primary, asked the board to remove his application for consideration.
"I was pretty excited at the prospect of seeking the appointment to fill (Hendershot's) position temporarily," Conley told the board. "After I submitted my name for consideration,
I did a little bit of thinking and I realized that there was also another person in District C running for a seat during the primary."
Although the board had 45 days to pick an interim member they stepped up the timeline as their choice could potentially impact the upcoming May 14 election.
By law, no more than two members can be seated from the same magisterial district, of which there are three - A, B and C - in Wood County.
The candidates who filed for the ballot are:
≤ Ron Tice, District A
≤ Robert E. Mercer, District A
≤ Judy Johnson, District B
≤ Chad Conley, District C
≤David A. Wilson, District C
Tice and Johnson are incumbents already serving on the board, while the remaining board members, Justin Raber and Sarah Townsend, are from Districts B and C, respectively.
The board cannot appoint an interim member from District B. If they appoint someone from District A, then the highest vote-getters in May will be seated on the board, as long as they are not from the same district.
But if an interim member is appointed from District C, no candidate from that district could be seated.
"The citizens of Wood County should be able to participate in the fair and democratic election process to vote for anyone that is currently filed to run for the election during the primary in May," Conley said. "For this reason, I am withdrawing my name from consideration."
If the board appoints someone from District A, the wording on the ballot would remain the same stating, "vote for no more than two: District A-1 and District B-1; Or District C-1". But, if the board appoints someone from District C, the wording would change to, "vote no more than two: District A-2; Or District A-1 and District B-1; District C-0."
Conley recommended the board appoint someone from District A.
"This is the only option that will allow candidates filed from District C to be able to run and allow the citizens of Wood County to participate in the fair and democratic election process," Conley said.
The deadline to withdraw from the ballot is 4:30 p.m. today, via a notarized request form submitted in person at the clerk's office.
The new board member will be sworn in during the regular meeting of the Wood County Board of Education tonight in the Jefferson Elementary Center auditorium at 6 p.m. The meeting is open to the public and will be streamed online.
Douglass Huxley can be reached at dhuxley@newsandsentinel.com