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South Range resident, school board have court date set
By ROBERT CONNELLY
YOUNGSTOWN
South Range resident Richard Ferenchak and school district officials have further court dates in the injunction he seeks against the school district.
A mediation and pretrial hearing is set for March 1, 2016, with a trial to follow May 3 in the case concerning the March 16 appointment of Amy White to school board. The case is in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.
“It is the normal pace for a civil case in Mahoning County,” said Atty. Anthony Farris, Ferenchak’s attorney and former Youngstown law director.
South Range Treasurer Jim Phillips represented the schools Friday morning with the district’s attorney, John Britton, along with Atty. Megan Bair.
Ferenchak filed an injunction against South Range after the appointment of White by the school board in March.
The Vindicator’s attorney, Atty. David Marburger, argued that the school board violated state open-meeting law when it appointed White after the resignation of Bruce Zinz in February.
The school board has said it did nothing wrong.
A name plate for White was already on the table before the school board voted to approve White as its fifth member.
White later resigned, the board went through another appointment process, and again selected White as a board member.
There were six candidates for Zinz’s vacancy. Ferenchak was one of them and was advised he wasn’t a finalist and would not be interviewed.
That decision was not made in an open meeting, according to Ferenchak’s filing. That, along with proceeding actions, violated the open-meeting law, he argues.
Ferenchak wants the school board to pay his legal fees and to be fined for violating the open-meeting law.
Both White and Ferenchak are running for school board positions in the November general election.
Three school board seats are open – two full, four-year terms and one two-year term to finish the original position held by Zinz.
Ferenchak filed to run for the two-year position while White filed for a four-year position.