NEW CUMBERLAND, Pa. — In a five to four vote, and dozens of community members voicing their frustrations, the West Shore School District school board appointed a new law firm and a new solicitor, without going through the board's Request For Proposal (RFP) process.
At Thursday's school board meeting, more than 100 people put in electronic public comments, and dozens more addressed the board face-to-face. Only a few people were in support of the board's actions.
Among them was parent Danielle Gross.
"It’s not really a surprise that they wanted to choose another solicitor," she said. "It is a surprise that they decided to abandon the RFP process."
The main concern was the lack of proper processes, seemingly violating Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act by not taking any formal action before putting the appointment of the new solicitor on the agenda.
"Transparency, transparency, transparency," said one member of the public. "I haven't seen you show any bit of transparency yet."
Also on the table was a vote to suspend Board Policy 005, Section 7, which gives the board the power to appoint the solicitor.
"If they're going to suspend a policy every time they want to violate it, what's the point of even having policies?" Gross said.
The board voted 5 to 4 to suspend it, with President Heidi Thomas, V.P. Kelly Brent, and board members David Brinton, Brenda Cox, and Mandy Davis all in the majority. This paved the way for the proposed solicitor to be installed despite no policy committee discussion on his appointment.
Only a few people spoke in favor of the board’s actions.
"I thank you guys for what you're doing," one woman said. "There's lots of people behind me."
An overwhelming majority, however, expressed their frustration, screaming "shame" and calling the move "disgusting."
FOX43 reached out to Brooke Say, the solicitor who was let go, for comment on her termination. We did not hear back.
We also reached out to the new solicitor Kevin Hall, who was in the front row of the meeting, who also did not reply.
Board President Heidi Thomas released the following statement to FOX43:
"Since my election as President of the West Shore School District Board of School Directors, we have continuously strived toward moving in a direction that is in the best interest of the district. Together, with a change in the solicitor this evening, we are continuing this forward movement.
We want to thank the prior solicitor for her years of service to the District. We have every confidence that our new solicitor can serve the best interest of the District moving forward. Tucker Arensburg, PC, is the largest firm in Pennsylvania with a dedicated practice of representing school districts, and they currently represent over 15 districts as a general solicitor or special counsel.
As this was an action to hire professional legal services, no formal request for proposal (RFP) process was necessary. The timing of the action was based upon the desire to move forward with a different solicitor prior to the important job of working with the administration to develop a budget for the upcoming school year. Tucker Arensburg was chosen based upon their expertise and experience as a firm with the hope of developing a new and long-lasting relationship with the district.
I thank my fellow board members who supported this change and look forward to working with the new solicitor, administration, officials, and my fellow colleagues on the board on the important issues facing our district."
The district will now have to pay both Say and Hall's salaries. This comes amid a projected deficit of more than $15 million and a proposed tax increase of 6.25%.
In a statement, Say's law firm, Stock and Leader, wrote in part, "...We stand by the excellence of our work and the trusted partnerships we have built at West Shore."