Claysburg may offer interim chief job

C-K school board discusses hiring Helsel permanently for vacant position

CLAYSBURG -- The Claysburg-Kimmel School Board discussed directing district administration to enter into negotiations with interim Superintendent Brian Helsel to fill the position left vacant following the resignation of Superintendent Mark Loucks on Nov. 22.

Helsel declined to disclose why Loucks resigned, saying it was a personnel matter.

Loucks took over as superintendent from Darren McLaurin in July 2022. In July 2023, Loucks went on a leave of absence, at which time Helsel stepped in as interim superintendent.

Board member Joe Musselman broached the topic during Wednesday evening's board meeting, saying that they needed to move forward in replacing Loucks.

"I personally believe we have a candidate that's already in-house," Musselman said.

Following the advice of board solicitor Krystal Edwards, the board members agreed to enter into executive session to discuss the matter after the meeting adjourned.

In other matters, the board appointed Amy Claar-Gill as its president in a 5-3 vote. She took over for Richard Gergely, who did not run to retain his seat in May.

"I love this district," Claar-Gill said. "It has a great administrative team and I look forward to working with them."

Claar-Gill is a 1995 graduate of the district and owns Claar Notary in Claysburg. She said she is entering her fifth year and second term on the board.

"I want to make sure our curriculum is a top priority," Claar-Gill said. "I want our kids to be prepared for the next step. I want families to pick Claysburg-Kimmel and to want to send their kids here."

The board also needed to fill the board vacancy left by Gergely, as no one else ran to fill the seat.

Board member Jeremy Knott explained that the board could appoint someone to fill the vacancy and that person would sit on the board until the next municipal election in 2025.

"I know that (Gergely) didn't rerun, but he's more than willing to continue down that path," Knott said.

After amending the agenda to add appointing Gergely to the vacant seat, the floor was opened to public comment.

Claysburg resident Stacy Claycomb questioned the appointment, calling it "strange."

"I was here when Rich resigned for family reasons, to spend time with his family, so it seems kind of strange that now you're going to appoint him back to a position that he resigned from because he doesn't have time to do it," Claycomb said.

Musselman told Claycomb that he had talked to Gergely and that it was being board president that took up too much of his time, not being a board member.

The board approved an Act 1 budget resolution, confirming that it would not raise its real estate millage above the inflation index of 7.7% for the 2024-25 school year.

Mirror Staff Writer Rachel Foor is at 814-946-7458.