It was out with the old and in with the new at the Huntley School Board meeting Thursday night.
Leaving the board were Frank Coleman, Rosemary Herringer and School Board President Mike Skala.
Coleman and Herringer retired, while Skala lost his bid for re-election by 13 votes.
Newcomers sworn in for four-year terms were first place winner Aileen Seedorf, not a member of the ruling clique, and members-in-good-standing Kevin Gentry and Jim Carlin. Carlin edged out Skala by 13 votes. Skala was 1 vote ahead of Seedorf running mate Linda Moore.
Tony Quagliano was sworn in for a two-year term.
There were touching going away comments for the members leaving the board which I may get into at some other time, but the biggest news I saw was appointed, now re-elected without opposition to a two-year term Tony Quagliano making a clean break with his former ally Larry Snow and the woman Snow backed for school board, Aileen Seedorf.
In the vote for school board president both Shawn Green and Larry Snow were nominated. Green was elected with erstwhile Snow ally Tony Quagliano voting for Green.
Quagliano was rewarded by being elected board vice president by the same clique.
Before the vote Snow went into detail as to why he thought Green should not be elected.
“Mr. Green and I differ on so many things. His approach to governing and mine are very, very different.
“When he ran for the board he said he would analyze every penny we’re going to spend.
“But I was disappointed that you didn’t make any effort in that regard,” Snow said looking at Green, who was sitting to Snow’s left.
Snow was critical of the way negotiations on the teachers’ contract were handled.
“When I asked for the proposal of what had been proposed to the teachers, (you wouldn’t give it to me. That) is not my idea of cooperation.
“It’s not my idea of common sense and collaboration.
“I am concerned that with Mr. Green as president the administrators will get to keep the $200,000 of in lieu (cash fringe benefits).
“That will fracture (the community).
Another concern apparently arose last week when Green said something to the effect, “You can’t expect the superintendent to read all the board policies.”
Snow pointed out that the superintendent earned $145,000.
“I don’t think it’s the role of the board president to be an apologist (for the superintendent).
“I have a real concern that Mr. Green has no management experience, as far as I know, in his whole life.”
Snow then referred to Green’s cutting people off when they were addressing the board.
“I am concerned about serious conflicts of inters you (have demonstrated).”
Then Snow talked about “how the last Director of Technology departed from this district.”
“How it went down is a serious conflict of interest.”
After explaining his view of Green’s deficiencies, Snow put forth the positive reasons for electing himself board president.
“Taxpayers would be assured that if I said we were providing proper oversight, then proper oversight was actually happening.”
He spoke of the election results showing a substantially split community.
“There’s only so much lack of trust the board can endure.
“I believe I have earned the support of a substantial part of the community.
“Several of you personally dislike me. This isn’t about personalities.”
Electing him, Snow said, “would place a tremendous burden on me to be fair.
“The burden would be on me to accomplish substantial (achievements).
“You have the votes to get anything you want anyway you want it.
“No amount of spin is going to save this board from electing board member Green.
“You have a tremendous opportunity to change the image of this board, to improve its image.”
“In the last couple of years I’ve done my best to keep this board moving forward,” Green said when Snow finished.
“It’s probably a high likelihood that I seconded his motions more than anyone else.
“We need to follow the code of conduct.
“If people follow the code of conduct that person and I will get along fine.
“The only time I really jump up is when false information is being given and when the code of conduct is being changed (?) around here.”
Newly elected board member Aileen Seedorf, who nominated Snow, was next.
“While I appreciate Mr. Green’s good intentions, there have been votes that affected Mr. Green’s wife. While they may have been (legal there was the appearance of a conflict of interest).
Seedorf also observed that there had been “selective enforcement of the code of conduct.
“I have also regarded you to be one of the most non-participatory (of the board members),” the woman who has sat through numerous board meetings said.
Seedorf mentioned “four administrators, seven board members and a political action committee(‘s suppporters)” had “totally ignored citizen input from Tony Quagliano and Larry Snow.
“Frankly, the people I’ve talked with don’t want filtering.”
Then she mentioned that the board should not “hide things under a rock.”
“I wanted to give everyone a chance when they were running for the board,” she continued, referring to the controversy about the 55-cent tax hike the effects of which were falsely presented.
“When seated, it seemed as if they were ready (to go ahead without changing anything)”
She referred to both Snow and Quagliano. “Mr. Quagliano was the more subtle.
“It may not be things that people want to hear about, but it’s things people need to know.
“I believe that a lot of this would still be hidden (without Snow’s and Quagliano’s efforts).
“We wouldn’t have known about the ACT (score problem and, maybe more items I missed).
Newly sworn in board member Kevin Gentry asked about “filtering the information.”
Without recognition, a man in the audience named Michael Andre, who applied for the appointment Tony Quagliano got, disputed Seedorf’s memory of his having used the word “filter.”
Snow pointed out that the board was ready to approve a budget proposing still another tax increase until he spotted it.
The vote to kill that proposed budget turned out 5-2.
In the election, Green won 4-2. Green abstained.
Quagliano, who signaled a break in his alliance with Snow just prior to the April election by resigning as Snow’s political action committee treasurer, voted for Green.
In return, the ruling, now clique of five, elected Quagliano vice president.
In the contest for secretary, Snow nominated Seedorf, pointing out that the school board president and secretary signed all legal documents and that there would be more community trust if the board showed “some concept of legal oversight.”
Referring the election in which Seedorf topped everyone, Snow said, “I think there needs to be some balance…not the same old everything.”
Quagliano said nice things about Seedorf.
“I do want to thank Mrs. Seedorf. I really only have good things (to say about her).
“This presumption that there is a them and (us is false). I’ve come from the outside. That, quite frankly, is a bunch of crap.
“I’m going to have a very difficult decision in the next few minutes.
“I think there is a perfect balance on this board,” he concluded.
Quagliano voted with the same board members he had before and 14-year board member Kim Sjaka was elected secretary.
= = = = =
In the top photo, you can see the four newly elected Huntley School board members being sworn in. They are standing, left to right, Kevin Gentry, Aileen Seedorf, Tony Quagliano and Jim Carlin.
The head shots of new four-year school board members below are in order of the number of votes each received. From left to right are Aileen Seedorf, Kevin Gentry and Jim Carlin.
Below that is a picture of Larry Snow talking to the new school board president Shawn Green after the meeting adjourned. Keven Gentry can be seen between them.
Two pictures of those in the audience are below to the right.
Head shots of Shawn Green, Aileen Seedorf, Kevin Gentry, Michael Andre, new board vice president Tony Quagliano and newly elected secretary Kim Sjaka appear below the crowd scenes.
Below the line is a photo taken after the meeting of Micheal Andre (on the left) talking with District 158 chief Operating Officer Glen Stewart and newly elected board member Jim Carlin.