Today's process for picking a new Wake County school board member should be simpler than what happened when vacancies were last filled in 2009.

In 2009, board members ranked on a written ballot which applicants they preferred. After several rounds of voting, the person was chosen.

Today, board members will just vote by written ballot for one person. Once a person gets at least four votes, it's all over. Board members have to sign the ballots so we'll know afterward who voted for which person.

In addition to reorganizing the transportation department, the Wake County school board will appoint a new member today, approve a new voluntary desegregation resolution and discuss school facilities crowding and new school sites.

The board has set aside five hours to interview the eight applicants for the District 1 vacancy. They'll all be asked the same questions.

The vote will take place at the end of the regular meeting because the new member takes office once the vote occurs. Some board members were worried that the new member would vote tonight on items without being fully briefed.

Former Wake County school board member Debra Goldman wants to be remembered for being thoughtful in all her decisions and for actions such as bringing Tony Tata to the area and helping "students be able to go to schools closer to where they live."

Goldman explained during a press conference today that she resigned Friday to become executive director of the Derie Cheek Reece Foundation , a Wilkes County-based non-profit that raises awareness of strokes and how to prevent them. Goldman was asked what she hoped would be the legacy that she'd leave behind on the board.

"I believe that my legacy will be what I've heard in these letters I've been getting, the phone calls, the emails, the Facebook messages (from supporters since the resignation)," Goldman said. "They all have been they felt I was a board member that really thought about every decision."

it looks like Wake County school board member Debra Goldman's resignation plans didn't go as planned, setting up a potential legal issue for the district.

Goldman said her plan was to announce her resignation at Tuesday's meeting, where she would discuss the new job she's taking with a non-profit in the Wilkes County area. She wanted to wait until then so she could vote on the filling the District 1 board vacancy.

"I am preparing to move,” Goldman said. “The voters in my district deserve to have me weigh in on the replacement for Chris Malone. I still live in Cary.”

UPDATE

The legal controversy is over. Goldman sent this followup email announcing her resignation goes into effect immediately.

Hello again... My excitement continues to mount regarding my new position. As I'm very eager to move forward, I have spoken with Jonathan Blumberg. I believe that to make this as streamlined as possible, for all involved, my resignation is effective right away. I would like to be able to represent my district, but feel that with my need to transition and go back and forth between Wake and Wilkes, it is best for all that I resign at this time.
Debra Goldman
WCPSS Board of Education

It looks like the Wake County school board will now have two vacancies to fill.

Debra Goldman changed her voter registration status last week from Cary to Ronda, a town in Wilkes County. She's now been dropped from the Wake County Board of Elections rolls, disqualifying her from serving on the school board.

It's not immediately clear if Goldman, who missed the Jan. 22 board meeting, has submitted her resignation yet. She did not immediately return a request for comment Friday.

This gives the Democratic board majority a chance now, along with filling Chris Malone's vacancy, to increase the majority to 7-2.

Shinica Thomas cites her many years of being involved in her children's schools and her passion for helping students learn with why she should be appointed to the District 1 seat on the Wake County school board.

In Thomas' application, she writes that she understands firsthand the need for family involvement having served for the past 10 years in school PTAs and booster groups for her two teenage sons. She's now the parent representative for Heritage High School on the District 1 Board Advisory Council.

"To say that I have a vested interest in this school system is putting it mildly," Thomas, 39, a Democrat from Wake Forest, writes. "It is important to me that community members are engaged in strong relationships and meaningful opportunities in our school system to help foster its success."

H. Wade Minter is citing his technology background and the fact that he's a parent of two students as reasons he should be appointed to fill the District 1 vacancy on the Wake County school board.

In Minter's application, he notes his career background is in information technology. Minter, 37, says he's worked for various technology companies over the years and is now director of engineering for a online and mobile software company he helped start.

"With a background in Wake County's booming technology sector, I should bring a unique perspective to the board, one in tune with the challenges and opportunities that result from the digital era," Minter writes. "Finding ways to make sure that our students are prepared for a world of tablets, smartphones, and pervasive internet will be a key area over the next several years, and one that I can speak to from experience."

Don Mial's application for the District 1 vacancy on the Wake County school board should look familiar, especially if you live in state House District 39.

A lot of Mial's application letter matches what's on his campaign website from his unsuccessful run last year in the Democratic primary for House 39. His school board application includes a few wording changes, but whole sentences are the same as the website, including references about expanding pre-kindergarten programs and addressing the achievement gap.

What's new in the application is Mial, 62, talking about what it was like being a minority student in Raleigh as the school system slowly began to integrate.

David Menaker argues that what the Wake County school board needs is someone like him who is a businessman and not another educator to fill the District 1 vacancy.

In his application, Menaker, 64, points to his experience as president of a company that builds homes and commercial properties and managing partner of a residential development company. The Wendell resident also notes he was an elected official in Kill Devil Hills and is now a single parent with a son at Lake Myra Elementary.

"You will, no doubt, get applications from suitable ex-educators, administrators, etc. — well meaning folks with public education experience — I am not one and suggest that you already have a staff full of that talent," Menaker writes in his application.

Hilda McCullers contends that her 30+ years as a classroom teacher and being a lifelong resident of Eastern Wake make her the best choice to fill the vacancy on the Wake County school board.

In her application, McCullers, 63, writes about having lived all her life in eastern Wake, going from being a student in the district to later a teacher. The Democrat taught science from 1975 to 2006, the majority of the time at Broughton High School.

"I have seen this area transition from mostly rural farm land to a more urban area as the population increased," McCullers writes in the application for the District 1 seat. "This gives me firsthand knowledge of the changes and challenges in District 1 both as a a parent and as an educator."