Following a two hour closed session to debate a trustee appointment and an hour and a half of questioning four candidates to fill the Round Rock ISD board vacancy, trustees again decided to delay naming a sole candidate for the position.

On Thursday, trustees Diane Cox, Chad Chadwell, Mason Moses and Nikki Gonzales interviewed four candidates: Kristine Parker, John Grey, Jennifer Henderson and Steve Math. Trustee Suzi David arrived following the interviews when the board was in closed session due to a delayed flight and Trustee Edward Hanna was away on a business trip.

"We want all of our trustees to be informed and be a part of this process," Gonzales said.

The trustees asked to place an additional item on the Thursday, Nov. 16 meeting agenda to debate a final appointment. Cox said she would like to see the sole candidate be appointed and sworn in on that same night. Trustees David and Moses seconded this because of the quickly approaching holiday season.

Cox said this delay would allow the public to contact board members about the four candidates who interviewed and the two trustees who were not present for interviews to contribute to the conversation.

"Be prepared on Thursday to be able to sit on the dais," Cox said to the four candidates, saying the appointed candidate would be able to jump right in to board proceedings at the Nov. 16 meeting.

Paul Tisch initially opened the Place 6 vacancy in late May, after announcing he would be moving to College Station for a job with the Texas A&M University System. Following his resignation, board members decided to open the place to applications from the public. Thirty-one individuals applied, the board interviewed seven and ultimately selected Stuart Selvaggi. Selvaggi was sworn in the same night interviews were held. Within two weeks, Selvaggi resigned due to concerns from his financial background.

Since then, trustees have been debating how to fill this open seat. Eventually, the board opened up the application process to those who initially applied for the seat left open by Tisch. The new application process included a background check, and a more extensive set of questions to evaluate backgrounds.

The four who interviewed Thursday night each had 30 minutes to answer questions related to accountability, public education technical information and about how the district could improve.