NYS Department Of Ed Denies Stay, BCS School Board Vote Case Still Ongoing

by Thaddeus Flint
The New York State Education Department has denied a petition for a stay order in the case of Andrew Zlotnick and Rebekah Hartman vs. the Berlin Central School District Board of Education.
As was reported in the June 17 Eastwick Press, Zlotnick and Hartman filed a complaint with the New York State Education Department regarding suspected violations in the May elections for School Board members. The District had requested that 25 signatures instead of the legal 27 appear on candidates’ petitions. The District has stated that “the Board acknowledges an error with respect to its notice for candidates this year but respects the will of the voters who have elected the candidates of their choice…”
Zlotnick, from Petersburgh, lost the election to the candidate from Stephentown, Rachel Finney, with a final tally of 273 to 548. Hartman, a write-in candidate from Berlin, lost against incumbent Frank Zwack Jr., also from Stephentown, 110 to 543.
The stay order had asked for immediate relief from the Education Department and that the election be overturned.
On June 22, Tina Urbaitis, an appeals coordinator with the Education Department, wrote in a letter to Zlotnick and Hartman, “On behalf of the Commissioner, this is to advise you that no stay order will be issued.”
The Berlin School District quickly issued a press release stating that they were “pleased.”
Overturning the petition for a stay of the election does not mean that the complaint is now dead. The complaint itself is still being considered by the Education Department.
“The Zlotnick/Hartman appeal remains pending with SED. The District will continue to vigorously defend that appeal,” stated the Berlin School District’s press release.
While this might be the stated view of the District, it is unknown if this is also the view of the BCS Board of Education. At a June 21 Board Meeting, Board Member John Nash said that a previous statement issued by the District in regard to this matter and read by Board Member Liz Miller “was not the position of the entire Board.” A request to Acting School Board President Beverly Stewart for comment on the District’s latest statement was not returned by press time.
“The District’s attorney was the one who advised that the election proceed illegally…the Board has not convened to take a vote on their official position, but somehow the attorney has gotten the green light to defend her advice,” said Hartman on June 29. “It’s very sad, and I’m very disappointed with the Commissioner’s initial ruling, just for the fact that this is going to drag out and cost us all money. I want to apologize for this fact, and I hope that the benefit we get from this is that the District cleans up its act and the community begins to hold the District and the Board of Education accountable for their actions and inactions,” wrote Hartman.
A final decision on the case is not expected from the State Education Department for another six months.