Ten file for open school board seat

Board expected to make its choice privately

by Marisa Maldonado, Staff Writer
   The school board has 10 candidates to choose from when it selects a new interim member to fill the final six months of a vacant seat.
   The board is searching for a replacement for Attilio DeFalco, who resigned Aug. 31 to take a position at Cornell University. The board must name his replacement within 60 days of his resignation.
   In April 2008, when the seat becomes open again, voters will elect someone for another three-year term.
   According to the district, the candidates for the interim position — Edward Birch, Richeleen Dashield, Laura Galasso-Coons, Naushad Islam, Dawn Jackson, Arif Patil, Ravindra S. Patil, Scott E. Rekant, Arthur Robinson and Mahesh Shah — now must complete a questionnaire and be interviewed by the school board.
   Those interviews will be held during the afternoon and evening on Oct. 8 and 22 at the Board of Education office, 231 Black Horse Lane.
   Members of the public can attend the interviews, according to the district.
   The board will choose the candidate privately before the Oct. 22 board meeting and will swear-in the new member during that meeting, according to the district.
   Four of the candidates previously have run for seats on the board. Arif Patil and Mr. Shah ran for three-year seats in April, and Mr. Birch and Mr. Robinson both have run several times, most recently for a one-year term in 2006.
   Candidates for the board seat must be registered voters who have lived in South Brunswick for at least a year, and they cannot hold a contract or claim against the school district. The deadline to apply for the position was Monday.