8 area school boards re-organize, choose new officers

In addition to mistletoe, cookies and decorations, ’tis also the season for school board re-organizations.

Elections have consequences and within the past seven days, the first of those consequences became evident as eight school board held the meetings to choose new officers.

Here is a look at area school boards and their new leadership.

POTTSTOWN

Katina Bearden, who served as vice president under the previous board, was unanimously promoted at the Dec. 2 re-organization meeting to the presidency.

Elected vice president. also unanimously, was Steve Kline.

New board members Deborah Ann Spence, Phoebe Kancianic and Kurt Heidel, and returning member John Armato, were sworn into office by District Judge Scott Palladino. All four will serve four-year terms.

Also sworn in was a new student board member, Pottstown High School junior Mark Ellison III, and alternate Taylor Powell.

POTTSGROVE

Al Leach, who was named president in when Robert Lindgren resigned from the board, was returned to his post during the Dec. 2 re-organizational meeting.

Tina McIntyre was unanimously named vice president.

New board member Joe Vecchio took the oath, along with returning board members Charles Nippert, Jay Strunk and McIntyre, all of whom will serve four-year terms.

OWEN J. ROBERTS

The school board unanimously chose veteran board member Paul Friel as the new school board president during the Dec. 6 re-organization meeting.

Two members, Kathleen DiMarino and John R. Melniczek were nominated for the vice presidency and Melniczek was chosen by a 5-4 vote.

All the board members taking the oath of office Monday are newly elected. They are April Saboe, Rita Pederson, David Harmanos and Daniel Dougherty.

SPRING-FORD

Margaret Wright was elected school board president and Erica Hermans was voted to be vice president of the board during the Dec. 6 re-organizational meeting.

Three of the four board members sworn in for four-year terms are newly elected. They are Hermans, Karen Weingarten, and Gabrielle Deardorff. Clifford Jackson, who was unopposed for reelection last month, was also sworn in for another term.

PHOENIXVILLE

Susan Turner was elected unanimously as the new president of the Phoenixville School Board at the Dec. 6 re-organizational meeting.

Scott Overland was elected vice president by a 5-4 vote. Also nominated for vice president was newly appointed member Betsy Ruch, who has served previously on the board.

With the exception of Turner, who was appointed in 2020 and will now serve a full four-year-term, all the board members sworn in Monday – Overland, Victoria Walker, and Caitlyn Carminito – are newly elected.

PERKIOMEN VALLEY

The Dec. 6 re-organizational meeting for the Perkiomen Valley School board ended with Jason Saylor being elected president over Sarah Evans-Brockett by a vote of 5-4, which was met by applause from the large audience at the meeting.

Kim Mares was elected vice president over Reena Kolar, also by a vote of 5-4.

All four board members sworn in Monday — Jason Saylor, Tammy Campli, Don Fountain, and Rowan Keenan – are first-time school board office holders.

As the meeting wound down, Saylor acknowledged the bruising election battle and the division which has divided the district over COVID-19 protocols, talking about “unification” and that nothing said would convince either side of the issue to change their mind.

“Winning an election was the first and easiest part,” he said, adding “the next steps will be eventful and meaningful.”

UPPER PERKIOMEN

The Dec. 6 re-organizational meeting saw two nominations for both president and vice president.

In the voting, Judy Maginnis was elected president over past president Melanie Cunningham by a vote of 5-3. Cunningham was also nominated for vice president, but lost again to Peg Pennepacker again by a vote of 5-3.

District Judge Maureen Coggins swore in the four members who won seats in November’s elections. They are J.P. Prego, Emily Psaris McCormick, Keith McCarrick and Melanie Cunningham. McCarrick and Cunningham were reelected.

BOYERTOWN

James Brophy was elected as the new Boyertown School Board President Tuesday, Dec. 7, by a 7-2 vote over Roger Updegrove, who tried to nominate himself after already being nominated by Christine Neiman.

Neiman was then nominated for vice president by Updegrove, but lost in a 7-2 vote to Brian Hemingway, who most recently served as board president.

Sworn in to new four-year terms were new members Kristin Lord, Anthony Panarello and Jeffrey Zawada, who attended virtually because he is ill, and returning member Ruth Dierolf.

At the end of the meeting Brophy said he believes the new board will “begin the transition to the return to normalcy. Not the ‘new normal,’ but normal.”

“It’s not going to be easy, and we may stumble as we go,” he said, adding he looks forward to seeing students and parents full faces at graduation.

Source: Berkshire mont