On Tuesday, July 22, the Rockland Central School District Board of Education passed a resolution to appoint Tom Ward to fill the board member position left vacant following the resignation of James Buck on July 3.
The board invited the top four unelected vote getters in the February Board of Education election to interview for the position. Justin Murphy declined. Tom Ward and Dan Johnston were interviewed Monday and Jill Smith was interviewed Tuesday.
The three candidates were asked the same series of questions during the open sessions of the special board meetings. Because each candidate brought a lot to the table, and the board agreed all three candidates were worthy of the position, the board decided the appointment would go to the next highest vote-getter from the February election.
Tom Ward will be sworn in during the Aug. 5 board meeting, and will serve through June 30, 2026. The seat will be up for election during the next Board of Education election.