OC Board of Ed to fill open seat through provisional appointment

Board room

The Orange County Board of Education has announced the process for filling the Fourth District seat previously held by Tim Shaw.

Trustees will provisionally appoint a successor to serve through June 30, according to a public notice posted on the board’s website.

Candidates interested in serving on the board must submit letters of intent and resumes to ocbe@ocde.us by no later than noon on Tuesday, Nov. 30. Those materials will be reviewed by the board’s Executive Committee, which will extend invitations for follow-up interviews to candidates who have successfully completed the initial screening process. 

The board plans to hold interviews in public during a special board meeting on Dec. 8. The provisional appointment would also start that day and continue through June 30, 2022. Unless a valid petition calling for a special election is filed with the county superintendent’s office within 30 days of the provisional appointment, the selection “shall become an effective appointment,” the state’s Education Code says. 

Requirements for appointment

All resumes and letters must be filed by the deadline of 12 p.m. on Nov. 30, and those documents will become public information based on Brown Act requirements.

Candidates must be legal residents of the trustee area and registered Orange County voters at the time of appointment. Orange County Department of Education staff members and other school district employees are not eligible to serve on the board.

The Orange County Board of Education’s Fourth District represents Buena Park, Fullerton, La Habra, Placentia and portions of Anaheim. The seat became vacant following Shaw’s resignation on Nov. 1.

Shaw, who was elected to the board in March 2020, concurrently served on the La Habra City Council. In a statement announcing his decision to step down, he outlined his efforts to ensure no conflicts existed but said he was presented with a potentially costly legal challenge to serving on both governing boards.

About the OC Board of Education

The Orange County Board of Education is made up of five elected officials who each serve four-year terms. Its responsibilities include:

  • Approving the annual budget of the Orange County Department of Education
  • Receiving the annual audit of the Orange County Department of Education
  • Maintaining an awareness of the operations and financial conditions of the school districts in the county
  • Approving the purchase of property for department programs
  • Serving as Orange County’s appeal board for the adjudication of expulsion appeals and interdistrict attendance appeals
  • Representing Orange County’s education community and families at the local, county, state, and national level
  • Informing local communities about the programs and achievements of the Orange County Department of Education

More information can be found on the board’s official website.