J-M board member asked to resign
Jefferson-Morgan School Board voted unanimously Monday to ask board member Jon Hildebrand to resign because of his frequent absences from meetings over the past year.
The motion authorized school district solicitor Ernie DeHaas to contact Hildebrand to ask him for his resignation. Hildebrand and board President Lisa Mattish were absent from Monday’s meeting.
Contacted at his home Tuesday afternoon, Hildebrand said he was not informed of the board’s action.
“I have no intention of resigning,” he said. “I still have a commitment to Jefferson-Morgan through the end of my term in December.”
Hildebrand said he has missed several regular meetings recently because he was busy at work and required to travel frequently.
Board member Mark Pochron, who introduced the motion, said Hildebrand missed several regular monthly meetings, including a couple that were in consecutive months, as well as numerous board committee meetings.
“With everything currently going on within our district such as the budget, renovation and bond issues, the people of this district deserve full representation on this board and the people deserve better than what Mr. Hildebrand has produced,” Pochron said in a statement he read accompanying his motion.
According to minutes posted on Jefferson-Morgan’s website, Hildebrand last attended a regular monthly meeting in January. Over the last calendar year, he has missed half of the 12 regular meetings.
“If (Hildebrand) doesn’t want to participate, he ought to step down and let someone else take that seat,” Pochron said Tuesday.
If Hildebrand refuses to resign, the board, under the school code, could vote to declare his seat vacant for missing more than two successive regular meetings. The law, however, allows for absences resulting from illness or from a board member’s necessary absences away from the district.
Pochron suggested the position be offered to Brittany Morrison, the only candidate on the ballot for the spring primary election who is not an incumbent.
Voters will elect five board members this year. The five on the ballot are Morrison and incumbents Dan Wagner, Donna Brown, John Shaffer III and Mattish.
Hildebrand did not file nomination petitions and his term will expire at the end of the year.