Columbia school board president abruptly resigns 5 hours before meeting, no reason given

School Board President Keith Combs's resignation letter

The Columbia Borough school board president abruptly resigned Thursday in an email sent to board members and administrators about five hours before a school board meeting the same day.

Keith Combs, who's served on the school board off-and-on since 2011, sent an email around 1 p.m. with a brief letter stating he was resigning, effective Thursday, superintendent Tom Strickler told LNP.

Combs didn't give any reason for his decision, but Strickler told LNP he assumes it was work-related.

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https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/columbia-school-board-president-abruptly-resigns-hours-before-meeting/article_edf2e8ac-c056-11e9-bec3-0f7c9c3262a1.html

DA clears Columbia of second Sunshine Act violation complaint

Heather Zink's complaint was the second such filing with the district attorney's office against Columbia in seven months. The first complaint, which was settled just over a month after the alleged violation occurred in November, led to a stern letter from the district attorney's office.

While the office declined to investigate the first complaint because it could not prove there was an intent to violate the act, it said a subsequent inquiry would result in an investigation.

At points, the warning letter sent to Columbia in December was word-for-word what the district attorney's office wrote to the Manheim Township School Board in 2016 for holding 11 closed-door meetings with little to no explanation for them.

MORE:

https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/da-clears-columbia-of-second-sunshine-act-violation-complaint/article_bb953f12-bf5d-11e9-a5cb-17ba93011ae6.html

6th Street to be closed for Park Elementary dismissal, beginning Monday, August 19

For the safety of Park Students: Sixth Street, between Locust and Cherry Streets, will be closed to vehicle traffic from 2:30-3:30 pm when school is in session. Students will be dismissed at 2:50 pm via the Sixth Street doors. Street closure will begin on Monday, Aug.19.

Columbia Borough Council shakes status quo with requests for solicitor, auditor

When: Council meeting, Aug. 13.

What happened: Council voted to issue requests for proposals for five different professional services contracts, including the borough solicitor and auditor, two positions that have been filled by the same firms for several decades. Council also voted to advertise for requests for proposals for a new parking meter technician, a firm to do work on a survey of a proposed expansion of the borough's historic district, and one to conduct a study of parking in the downtown area. Council also approved a proposal to retain Capital Construction Management to provide a cost estimate on proposed interior renovations to the Columbia Market House.

MORE:

https://lancasteronline.com/news/regional/columbia-borough-council-shakes-status-quo-with-requests-for-solicitor/article_79108c4e-bf82-11e9-aad0-6f2b1ca3d484.html

2019-2020 Columbia School calendar is available

The calendar can be downloaded HERE.

Columbia School Board president resigns abruptly; 3 new directors are chosen

 Kate Keyser (left) and Sandra Duncan were appointed to the school board at Thursday night's meeting.

Lester Putt was also appointed to the board. Seated next to him is director Rachel Kedney, who nominated the three new appointees.

At Thursday night's Columbia School Board meeting, it was announced that President Keith Combs resigned his position effective August 15 via a letter dated the same day. (No reason was given for the resignation.)

As a result, the board appointed Charles Leader as president and Kathy Hohenadel as vice president. Leader was formerly the board's vice president.

The board also filled three vacancies by appointing Sandra Duncan, Kate Keyser, and Lester Putt to 3-month terms. Board Director Rachel Kedney selected the three in a single nomination. A fourth candidate, Robert Misciagna, was not nominated. The seats were open due to the resignations of Keith Combs and Jenna Geesey, and the passing of Barry Ford.

Agenda - Columbia School Board Meeting - August 15, 2019