ITHACA, N.Y. — Ithaca City School District (ICSD) Board of Education member Katie Apker resigned earlier this week after serving one year on the board. She had two more years left in her term.
It is currently unclear why Apker resigned. She did not respond to a request for comment.
Apker’s resignation, effective as of Aug 11, was announced at Tuesday night’s school board meeting — the first voting meeting of the new term. The announcement thanked Apker for her service, but did not provide a reason for her departure.
Apker was not present at the meeting. Her ICSD email appeared to be deactivated as of Wednesday.
In a text message, school board president Sean Eversley Bradwell echoed the announcement read at Tuesday’s meeting, but also did not give a reason for Apker’s resignation. Bradwell was also absent from the meeting.
“We are grateful for [Apker’s] service to the ICSD community. There is much work ahead and much to discuss regarding possible next steps,” Bradwell wrote. “We anticipate that this discussion will be included on an upcoming board agenda in the very near future.”
District policy states the board can opt to leave the seat vacant or appoint a replacement who would serve until the next election in May 2025. Any appointment would need to be approved by a majority vote of the board.
Board members can also opt to call a special election, though in years past, board members have warned it could cost the district tens of thousands of dollars.
The last time a board member resigned was in 2022, when Nicole LaFave stepped down. At the time, the board opted to leave LaFave’s position vacant until the May 2023 election, when it was filled by psychologist and now-school board vice president Adam Krantweiss.
Whenever Apker’s replacement is elected — either in a regular election next May or in a special election — their term will run through June 2027.
Apker initially won her seat on the board in May 2023. She is a researcher and graduate student at Cornell University and has four children in the district.
During the spring’s tumultuous school budget process, Apker remained fairly moderate — though she later backed some cost cutting measures and at times sided with board members more critical of district spending.