Vacancy in districts of the first class.

Vacancies in other classes.

Vacancy of entire membership.

none of the parties who had received an equal number of votes for such office shall be eligible for such vacancy.

Section 214. In case any vacancy shall occur in any board of school directors in any school district of this Commonwealth, by reason of death, resignation, removal from the district, or otherwise, such vacancy shall, in a school district of the first class, be filled for the unexpired term by the court of common pleas of the county in which such school district is situated; and in a school district of the second, third, and fourth classes, the remaining members of the board of school directors shall, by a majority vote thereof, fill such vacancy within thirty (30) days thereafter. In a district of the second, third, or fourth class the person selected to fill such vacancy shall hold his office, if the term thereof so long continues, until the first Monday of December after the first municipal election occurring more than thirty (30) days after his appointment; at which election an eligible person shall be elected for the remainder of the unexpired term: Provided, That if, by reason of a tie vote or otherwise, such vacancy shall not have been filled by the board of school directors as is herein provided, within thirty (30) days after such vacancy shall have occurred, the court of common pleas of the proper county, upon the petition of ten or more resident taxpayers, shall fill such vacancy by the appointment of a suitable person for the unexpired term.

Section 215. In case vacancies should occur whereby the offices of a majority of the members of any board of school directors, other than the board of school directors of a school district of the first class, should become vacant, the remaining members shall fill such vacancies one at a time, giving the new appointee such reasonable notice of his appointment as to enable him to meet and act with the then qualified members of the board in making further appointments, until a majority of the board has been secured, when the said majority shall fill the remaining vacancies at a meeting attended by the majority of said board, such appointees to receive a majority of the votes of the members present at any such meeting. The persons selected to fill such vacancies shall hold their offices, if the terms thereof continue so long, until the first Monday in December after the first municipal election occurring more than thirty (30) days after their appointment, at which election eligible persons shall be elected to fill the unexpired terms.

Section 216. If at any time vacancies should exist or occur in the membership of all the members of any board of school directors in any school district of this Commonwealth, other than a school district of the first class, the court of common pleas of the county in which such district, or the largest part in area thereof, is located, shall appoint a board of properly qualified per

Failure to

remove from

sons who shall serve until the first Monday in December after the first municipal election occurring more than thirty (30) days after their appointment; at which election a board of school directors for such district shall be elected in the same manner as the school directors of the districts of the same class were first elected after this act went into effect; but such school directors shall be so elected that the number and terms of those whose places are to be filled at each succeeding municipal election shall be the same as the number and terms of those whose places are filled at the corresponding elections in other school districts of the same class. Section 217. If the board of school directors in any district in this Commonwealth shall fail to organize organize. as hereafter provided, or refuse or neglect to perform any duty imposed upon it by the provisions of this act, any ten resident taxpayers in said district may present their petition in writing, verified by the oath or affirma- Procedure to tion of at least three of them, to the court of common office. pleas of the county in which such district, or the largest part in area of it, is located, setting forth the facts of such refusal or neglect of duty on the part of such school directors; whereupon the said court shall grant a rule upon said school directors, the same to be made returnable in not less than ten or more than twenty days from the date of issue thereof, to show cause why they should not be removed from office; of which rule the said school directors shall have at least five days' notice. On or before the return day of such rule the said school directors, individually or jointly, shall file in writing their answer or answers to said petition, under oath; and if the facts set forth in said petition presented by said taxpayers, or any material part thereof, be denied, the court shall then hear the several parties on such matters as are contained in said petition; and if on such hearing, or if when no answer is filed denying the facts set forth in said petition, the court shall be of the opinion that any duty imposed on said board of school directors, which is by the provisions of this act made mandatory upon them to perform, has not been done or has been neglected by them, the said court shall have the power to remove said board, or such of its number as in its opinion is proper, and appoint for the unexpired terms other qualified persons in their stead, subject to the provisions of this act.

Director removed

Section 218. Any person so removed from the office of school director shall not be eligible again as school not eligible. director for the period of five (5) years thereafter.

Section 219. The court shall impose the costs of

such proceedings upon the petitioners, or upon the Costs.
school directors, or upon the school district, or may
apportion the same among them as it shall deem just
and proper.

Refusal or neglect to qualify.

Refusal or neglect to attend meetings.

Returns of eleetion.

Certificate of election.

Election legal unless contested.

Section 220. If any person elected or appointed as school director, who has been notified of his election or appointment, shall refuse or neglect to qualify as such director, within ten days next succeeding the beginning of his term of office, the remaining members of the board may declare his office as director vacant.

Section 221. If any person having qualified as school director shall neglect or refuse to attend two successive regular meetings, unless detained by sickness, or prevented by necessary absence from the district, or if in attendance at any meetings shall neglect or refuse to act in his official capacity as a school director, the remaining members of the board may desire his office as director vacant.

Section 222. The number of votes cast for the several candidates for school directors in all school districts in this Commonwealth at any election shall be returned by the election officers, as provided by law, and the clerk, prothonotary, or other proper authority, shall, within ten days thereafter, under seal of the court, certify the result of the election to each candidate duly elected, and a duplicate copy of each such certificate shall be mailed to the president of the board of school directors in the district in which such person or persons were elected.

Section 223. Every election of school directors returned by the proper election officers, as required by law, shall be legal unless such election is contested within ten days after the day of election by ten qualified voters of the district, by written objections thereto, statContested election. ing particularly the reason for contesting such election, which objections shall be filed in the court of quarter sessions of the county in which such election was held, which court is hereby authorized and required, forthwith, to examine into the said contested election and to confirm or set aside the same. If the election of any school director so contested shall be set aside by the court, such vacancy shall be filled, as in case of other vacancies, by the board of school directors organizing on the first Monday of December next following said municipal election, within thirty (30) days after its organization, or after such election has been declared illegal by the court.

Vacancy.

Shall serve

without pay.

Oath.

Section 224. All persons elected or appointed as school directors shall serve without pay except as hereinafter provided, and before entering upon the duties of their office shall take and subscribe to the following oath or affirmation, which may be administered by any one qualified to administer an oath, or as hereinafter provided:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support, obey and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of this Commonwealth, and that I will discharge the duties of my office with fidelity;

that I have not paid, or contributed, or promised to pay or contribute, either directly or indirectly, any money or other valuable thing to procure my nomination or election (or appointment), except for necessary and proper expenses expressly authorized by law; that I have not knowingly violated any election law of this Commonwealth, or procured it to be done by others in my behalf; that I will not knowingly receive, either directly or indirectly, any money or other valuable thing for the performance or non-performance of any act or duty pertaining to my office, other than the compensation allowed by law.

Misdemeanor.

Section 225. Any school director in this Common- Bribes. wealth who shall, directly or indirectly, accept or receive any money or any other valuable thing for voting for or against, or for withholding his vote for or against, any appointment or matter or action that shall come, before the board or any committee thereof, or before any convention of school directors of which he is a member, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall forfeit his office and shall not be eligible again to hold office of any kind provided for in this act, and shall be liable to pay a fine of not less than five dollars ($5.00) or more than five hundred dollars ($500.00), or be sentenced to the county jail for a term of not less than thirty (30) days or more than one year, either or both, as the court may determine.

Section 226. No school director shall, during the term for which he was elected or appointed, be employed in any capacity by the school district in which he is elected or appointed, or receive from such school district any pay for services rendered to the district except as provided in this act.

ARTICLE III.

ORGANIZATION, MEETINGS, AND OFFICERS OF
BOARDS OF SCHOOL DIRECTORS.

Penalty.

Director shall not

nor be employed by his district.

receive pay from,

Organization of

Section 301. In all school districts of the first class Beginning of the school year shall begin on the first day of January school year. each year, and in all other school districts in this Commonwealth the school year shall begin on the first Monday of July each year. In school districts of the first class the school directors appointed as herein provided shall meet and organize annually on the second Monday of November, and in school districts of school boards. the second, third, and fourth class the school directors regularly elected or appointed shall meet and organize annually on the first Monday of December each year. When a new school district is created, or when the offices of all the school directors of a district become vacant, the school directors appointed by the court, in any such case, shall meet and organize within ten days after their appointment.

Notice to members of time of organization.

Permanent organization.

First class districts.

Other classes.

Shall elect. secretary and treasurer.

Appointees.

Section 302. All members of the board of school directors in every school district in this Commonwealth shall be given five days' notice, by mail, by the secretary of the retiring board, of the time and place of meeting for organization, at which time and place, if a majority be present, an organization shall be effected as follows: In districts of the first class there shall be elected from the hold-over members a temporary president and secretary; and in all other school districts there shall be elected from the hold-over members a temporary president, and the secretary of the board shall act as secretary of such meeting. The certificates of the election or appointment of all new school directors shall be read, and a list of the legally elected or appointed and qualified school directors prepared. If any of the members have not taken and subscribed to the oath of office required by this act, the same may be administered to them by the temporary president: Provided, That on the second Monday of November or the first Monday of December, one thousand nine hundred and eleven (1911), any member of the board may be elected a temporary officer.

Section 303. A permanent organization shall then be effected for the ensuing year, as follows:

In all school districts of the first class, the school directors shall elect a president and a vice-president from their members, and a secretary who is not a member. They shall elect the treasurer of the city constituting such school district of the first class as the school treasurer for such school district for the ensuing fiscal year. In each school district of the second, third or fourth class, the school directors shall elect from their members a president and a vice-president, and shall annually on the first Monday of July elect a secretary and a treasurer, each of whom shall serve for one year. In school districts of the second class, the secretary and treasurer shall not be members of the board. In districts of the third and fourth class, they may be members of the board. The same person shall not be secretary and treasurer of any board of school directors.

Section 304. The board of school directors in each school district of the second, third, or fourth class, organizing on the first Monday of December after this act takes effect, shall elect a secretary and a treasurer, who shall act until the first Monday in July following, when their successors shall be elected for one year.

Section 305. Each board of school directors may further appoint a solicitor and such other appointees, clerks or employees as it may deem proper, none of whom shall be a member of the board, and shall define their duties and fix their salaries.