Nutley School Board Needs New Member

Board President James Kuchta told the audience at Monday night's school board meeting that trustees have 65 days to fill the seat vacated by Steven Rogers, who was elected to the Nutley Board of Commissioners on May 8.

The Nutley Board of Education Trustees could select someone to fill a vacant slot as early as June 11 - or as late as the end of July. The number of residents who apply will determine when the decision is made.

If too many apply, an ad-hoc committee will narrow the field, but the process will take longer, according to Kuchta.

"We could let the state School Boards Association pick a replacement, but we're going to do this ourselves," Kuchta said. "We will begin accepting letters of interest from residents on June 1st."

Anyone interested must have resided in Nutley for one year, be a United States resident, be able to read and write and submit to a criminal background check, he said.

The Board placed an advertisement to run in Wedensday's Nutley Sun that explains everything, Kuchta said.

So the Board could review a small number of applicants in time for a vote on June 11, or take until the end of July, requiring a waiver from the state to go beyond the 65-day limit, he said.

Rogers was sworn-in as a Nutley Commissioner on May 14 and took over as director of the Department of Public Affairs that night.

Rogers spent 35 years in law enforcement, much of that in Nutley, after serving in the U.S. Navy. He is seen frequently on Fox News.