Candi Kruse was appointed president of the Southern Lehigh School Board, and recently ousted president Emily Gehman returned to board leadership as vice president following Tuesday’s reorganization meeting.
Kruse, who had been board vice president, won a unanimous voice vote to assume the presidency after Gehman declined her own nomination.
The leadership change Tuesday night came as four new board members — all of them Democrats, who swept the November election over a slate of Republicans that included two incumbents — took their seats on the board.
Incoming board member Kimberly Jaramillo nominated Gehman for president. Gehman, who had been elected temporary president to preside over the nomination process, thanked those who reached out to her in recent days to offer support before declining the nomination.
Gehman then thanked Kruse for her previous service as board vice president and nominated her to take the helm. That set off a wave of support for Kruse.
“It was never my intent to serve as president for as long as I have,” Gehman said, “nor was it my intent to pursue — it’s been an interesting few years, right? It was my intent to see us through that transition, but it has always been my focus to build a bench of board leadership.”
Gehman’s heated, public arguments with then-Superintendent Michael Mahon preceded his placement on administrative leave in February. Board members ousted Gehman as president in a contentious June meeting before approving a nearly $250,000 separation agreement with Mahon at the end of July.
The board also approved a $215,000 separation agreement with former human resources director Ethan Ake-Little, who had filed harassment and discrimination claims against Mahon. Board members opposed to Gehman questioned her role in investigating those claims and accused her of breaking confidentiality. A Morning Call investigation into the district’s legal bills revealed nearly $200,000 in charges that appear related to those claim investigations.
At the close of the meeting, veteran board member Melissa Torba recognized Gehman and thanked her for declining the nomination for president.
“That took a lot to decline, and your service and what you bring to the table cannot be overlooked,” Torba said.
Torba then called on the board to take seriously violations of policies that govern authority and powers, organization, meetings and fraud investigations.
“Otherwise it’s the wild, wild West,” Torba said. “I look forward to this team of nine moving forward with the best interest of the district, working with the district, not against the district, maintaining the rules and the policies that we do govern ourselves by.”
During the meeting, Torba nominated fellow veteran board member Eric Boyer for vice president.
Boyer, who works in storm support for PPL, said he would love to take on the position but declined, saying, “Obviously my job sometimes comes a little bit first on nights like this, so I don’t know if I could do diligence sometimes when the weather calls.”
Jaramillo then nominated Gehman for vice president. Gehman and Kruse voted yes, joined by Jaramillo and fellow new board members Luis Melecio and Josh Rager. Incoming board member Chris Sykora voted no. Boyer and Torba abstained. Veteran board member Tim Kearney was absent.
Melecio was the sole nominee and won a unanimous voice vote to take on the role of treasurer vacated after Christopher Wayock’s election loss. Melecio also won appointment to the Lehigh Career & Technical Institute advisory board.
Outgoing board member Nicole King, who did not run for re-election, was the sole speaker during public comment.
“Despite the challenges, division and unproductive conflicts that have weighed on this board, I am proud of the good work that has been done — work that truly made a difference for our students and community,” King said.
King said new board members are stepping into roles that matter more than they realize.
“There’s a real progress already in motion — progress that took patience and collaboration,” King said. “Please don’t lose sight of that. Don’t let personal disagreements, narcissistic personalities or noise drown out the mission that brought you here. Stay rooted in what is really right for the students, not what’s convenient or popular or what you’re told to do. Think for yourselves. This district has already endured enough division. You have a chance right now to choose a better path, to protect what’s been built, to improve it, and to lead with maturity, respect and purpose.”
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