05 Feb Another School Board Member Resigns

On Monday, the Scranton School Board met for the first time since School Director Robert Casey abruptly resigned his seat.  Casey, no relation to U.S. Senator Bob Casey, cited conflicts between his elected position and his employment with the Pennsylvania Auditor General as the reason for the departure.

This is the third school board vacancy in four months.  The first opening occurred with the untimely death of Carol Oleski in October.  Former Pennsylvania auditor Greg Popil was selected after a comprehensive interview process.

In December, Paige Gebhardt Cognetti left the board to take a position with Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale.  Cognetti’ vacant seat was filled by local businessman Gopal Patel, who was narrowly chosen by the majority directors without an interview process.

Critics, including DePasquale, allege that the board violated the state’s Sunshine Act, which requires that official actions be advertised on the agenda and open to a public hearing.

The Scranton-Times Tribune first reported on Casey’s resignation.  The former director told the newspaper that DePasquale had not asked him to step down.

Casey was first elected in 2013 and re-elected in 2017.  The youngest director, he made headlines in 2014 following his arrest on charges of drunk driving and subsequent stay in a rehabilitation facility.  In 2015, he unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for Lackawanna County Clerk of Judicial Records.  He was in his second year as the board’s vice president.