By HOLLY WAGNER
Herald-Whig Staff Writer

A special session for the election of a president and vice president of the Quincy School Board has been called for 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Baldwin School by board members Glenn Bemis, Thomas Dickerson and Steven Krause.

Board members say they have no intention to elect a new president when the position is currently held by long-time board member Melvin “Bud” Niekamp. The president holds office for a two-year term. The agenda was designed to cover all contingencies, according to School Suprintendent Lonny Lemon.

Bemis decided Thursday night that he wanted to relinquish his position as president, a position he has held for less than two months. However, he wants to maintain his seat on the School Board, and he threw his support behind Dickerson, who was the president of the board from April 14, 2005 until April 30, 2009. Bill Daniels and Curtis Lovelace also voted for Dickerson to remain president at the April meeting.

Niekamp, who was elected vice president on the same night when Bemis was elected president, says he deserves the president's post and does not intend to not step down.

He said he didn't see any problem with finding the time to serve as president, he said. Niekamp told The Herald-Whig on Monday that he didn't seek the role as president when officers were elected in April because he was concerned it would conflict with his duties as president of the Quincy Consistory, a Masonic organization.

He now says he's no longer concerned about that conflict.

"I'll have a plateful, that's for sure," he said.

Regional Superintendent of Schools Ray Scheiter says the situation is unique in his experience. He said the School Board operates under the guidelines of Robert's Rules of Order, which provides rules and procedures for deliberation and debate for meetings of organizations. Scheiter says he believes Robert's Rules of Order may allow for the board to take a new vote for vice president. However, he doesn't know if the board can legally remove a sitting president.

The Illinois Council of School Attorneys published a document called "Answers to (Frequently Asked Questions) Vacancies on the Board of Education" in May that was designed to provide assistance to school leaders.

Under the question, "How are school board officer vacancies filled?", the answer for filling the vacancy of president was, "The School Code provides that the vice president is appointed the president pro tempore for the remainder of the president's term (which is either 2 years or 1 year, if the board has adopted a one-year term policy)."

The answer for filling the vacancy of vice president simply said, "The School Code does not specifically address vacancies in the office of vice president. Board policy may address the manner in which such a vacancy is filled."

To get legal guidance from the Illinois School Board of Education, Scheiter said he had to submit his question in writing via e-mail. As of press time, he had not received a response.

"I just wish they'd get down to business," Scheiter said. "It's summertime, so they can't hurt the kids yet."

To further complicate matters, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan recently provided the opinion that a county board member cannot serve on a school board. Niekamp has been a School Board member since 1989 and has served on the County Board since 1992. The positions have long been considered incompatible.

Chapman and Cutler, the board's bond agent, has said it will not count Niekamp's vote on bond issues. Signing off on bond sales is one of the requirements of a school board president, according to QPS Superintendent Lonny Lemon.

The board president also must sign all official documents, the meeting minutes, certify the levy and preside over Freedom of Information Act appeals. The board president may call a special meeting (otherwise, it takes three board members), and the president also appoints the committee chairs, prepares agendas and confers with the superintendent and the board's legal counsel.

"The president is involved, if not the lead, in contract negotiations," Lemon said.

In three contract negotiations this year, Niekamp "hasn't participated in any," Lemon said.

Dickerson said it would be difficult to quantify how many hours a week he spent on School Board duties as president.

"I devoted a lot of time preparing to be president of the board," he said. "You get out of it what you put into it."

Dickerson was elected in April 2003. In that time, he said he has not seen Niekamp get involved in contract negotiations or suggest an initiative for school improvement.

Dennis Gorman, the board's legal counsel, said he would not divulge how he will advise the board until after speaking with the board.

State's Attorney Jon Barnard said he had no idea about the legalities facing the board. "It's an internal matter," he said.

The questions surrounding the future of the board's leadership is distracting from the board's need to address class sizes and place teachers before school begins in August.

"It's a little disheartening," Quincy Federation of Teacher President Michelle Eberlin said. "This is becoming a diversion."

-- hwagner@whig.com/221-3374