BEDFORD, N.Y. – In the wake of the resignation of Mark Chernis from the Bedford Board of Education earlier this month, the school district is now seeking candidates to fill his seat.

The Bedford Central School District is made up of the towns of Bedford, Bedford Hills, Pound Ridge and Mt. Kisco.

Chernis, who had served as the board’s vice president, cited a conflict of interest and resigned after taking a senior executive position with Pearson Education, one of the leading education services companies in the U.S. In a statement, Chernis noted that Pearson “works with almost every district in the U.S.” It contributes to K-12 testing programs and is a vendor for the Bedford School District.

“As someone who has always been critical of those who have betrayed or confused the public trust by mingling public service and financial opportunity, I feel resigning is the responsible choice for me,” he said.

The school board is inviting interested individuals to submit an application by Oct. 7. It will hold a public special session to conduct interviews of all candidates on Oct. 19 no earlier than 7 p.m. The meeting, which is open to the public, will be televised on BCSD-TV and on the website via live video streaming.  

To assist the board in preparing questions and to gather community input, community members are asked to submit a topic or question for consideration at the public interviews to boe@bcsdny.org no later than Oct. 10. Following the public interview of candidates, community members can also submit input to the Board from Oct. 19 to 25 by e-mail at boe@bcsdny.org.

The board is expected to make an appointment on or about Nov. 16. The term of office will commence with the board’s appointment and continue until the next school board election on May 15, 2012.

To be eligible for this position, an individual must be a qualified voter of the district and have lived in the school district for at least one continuous year. At a minimum, service on the board requires preparation for and attendance at bimonthly board meetings. In addition, board members serve on at least one subcommittee, which meets monthly.  Interested individuals may obtain an application on the district’s website www.bcsdny.org or may contact Carole LaColla, district clerk at 914-241-6011 or via e-mail at clacolla1777@bcsdny.org.

Completed applications should be sent no later than Oct. 7 to Carole LaColla, District Clerk, Bedford Central School District, P.O. Box 180, Mount Kisco, NY, 10549

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