NOTE: This article has been corrected to reflect the process in which the vacant seat will now be filled. A previous version indicated the school board could still act until a judge ruled on a petition, which is incorrect.
Schuylkill County Judge Christina Hale has scheduled an Oct. 14 hearing to potentially fill a vacant Blue Mountain school board seat, taking jurisdiction over the process after three candidates petitioned the court to appoint a new member.
Hale issued an order Tuesday setting the hearing for 10 a.m. in Courtroom 5 at Schuylkill County Courthouse. She will consider petitions filed by district residents Kim Breiner, Krista Kantner, and Mary Jo Moss.
The eight remaining school directors lost their ability to fill the seat the moment a candidated filed a petition with the Schuylkill County Prothonotary. The appointment power now rests entirely with the Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas.
The court intervention follows the expiration of the board’s 30-day statutory window of exclusive authority after former director Roy Heim resigned Aug. 5. At a Sept. 1 special meeting – the board’s final public meeting before its exclusive deadline elapsed – directors deadlocked along faction lines while attempting to appoint one of four final candidates selected from an initial pool of roughly a dozen applicants.
Because directors failed to reach a majority consensus within 30 days, district taxpayers gained the legal right to petition the bench. Breiner, Kantner, and Moss each gathered at least 10 valid signatures and submitted their filings on Sept. 8, the first business day following the deadline.
In her filing, Breiner cited her business administration experience and criticized district spending. “I am aware of the delicate balance that it takes to remain financially solvent,” Breiner wrote. “The understanding that hemorrhaging money without attempting to rein in spending, all the while looking at the taxpayer as the bottomless bank account is not only wrong but unwise and unsustainable.”
Kantner highlighted her decades as a district kindergarten teacher and three years as president of the Blue Mountain teachers union, emphasizing her familiarity with classroom operations and board responsibilities.
Moss said that persistent board gridlock compelled her to petition after initially withholding a letter of interest. “I believed the board had several suitable individuals under consideration. However, as the process continued, the board remained divided,” Moss wrote. “It became clear to me that the board’s struggle to establish a 5-4 majority is hindering its ability to function effectively.”
Whoever Hale appoints will serve through Dec. 2027. Heim won election in 2025 to a term expiring at the end of 2029, leaving the remainder of his term to be filled in next year’s special election, when five other seats on the Blue Mountain board will also be on the ballot.
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