The Delaware Valley School District Board of Directors voted down a motion to retain outside counsel for upcoming contract negotiations, with a roll-call result reported as three yes votes and five no votes.

The proposed agreement would have hired the named firm at a rate of $215 per hour for in-person preparation time and follow-up around negotiations and $195 per hour for other legal work; the motion required a roll-call vote. During discussion, several board members said they supported outside counsel’s negotiation expertise but raised concerns about added travel time, a three-hour minimum charge in addition to meeting time, and the availability of the firm for on‑short‑notice bargaining sessions.

Roll call: School board members Jessica Decker, Jack Fisher and Alicia (Felicia) Sheehan voted yes. Christine Agron, Mandy Colville, Brian Fells, Pam Lutzky and Rosemary Walsh voted no. The motion failed (3–5).

Why it matters: The district is preparing for its largest professional contract negotiation in recent memory, and the question of whether to hire external negotiators affects costs, bargaining strategy and the staff resources the board will use.

Next steps: The board later announced a negotiations committee to handle upcoming bargaining, naming Christine Agron, Brian Fells, Rosemary Walsh and Jack Fisher as committee members and Mandy Colville and Jessica Decker as alternates. The selection of outside counsel may be revisited by that committee or the full board at a later date.

No contract with outside counsel was approved at the meeting.