Board of Education appoints two board directors
Posted on 04/13/2023
In a unanimous vote, the Mehlville Board of Education appointed Peggy Hassler and Jean Pretto to fill two vacancies on the board. The board also accepted the unofficial election results from April 4, 2023, and swore in Jeff Wolman for his second term as Board Director.
Hassler and Pretto had filed their candidacy for the Board of Education in an uncontested election. While their names were on the ballot, votes for them were not counted. Mehlville School District was notified on Monday, April 3, by St. Louis County Board of Elections that Hassler and Pretto were disqualified from the Mehlville Board of Education election. The sole reason for the disqualification is because their financial disclosure statements were filed late with the Missouri Ethics Commission. Their financial disclosure statements as sitting Board members have been timely filed and are in good standing.
Typically, there is no election when the number of candidates who file is the same as the number of positions to be filled. However, under the provisions of Missouri Statute Section 115.124, the Board of Education election appeared on the ballot because Prop E was also on the ballot.
When there is a board director vacancy, the Mehlville Board of Education follows board policy BBE-1. This policy instructs the board to notify the community of vacancies accept applications to fill those vacancies, or use a different process due to the timing of the vacancy or other relevant reasons.
The board choose to use a different process because the election had been uncontested and all disclosure statements have been submitted for both candidates.
Hassler and Pretto will be sworn in at the next Board of Education meeting and will each serve a one-year term until the next board election in April 2024.