Here's your Platfom - AGAIN

What do the candidates for School Board stand for?  What do they want?  What's their platform?  If you really don't know the answers to these questions, lets review our Six Questions segment from the spring.

We asked all six candidates the same six questions and we posted their answers.   Here are their answers:

Dr. Lobby , James Rearic and Larry Robb from Region I, Amy Lhote and Chris Choncek from Region II and Stan Berdell from Region III. 

Please read the responses and then ask yourself you you still have questions about their platform.  If you do, we urge you to contact them.

Let's Focus on the Facts!

It's time to focus on the facts and stop allowing things like planted, threatening letters, ridiculous referendum questions and tax payer-paid  propagandana to overshadow the good old facts.

ELDERTON

We have a high school that was reopened that will graduate 26 this year.
There are a total of 280 students in grades 7-12.
42 classes with less than 10 students.
21 classes with less than 5 students.
There are over 10 classes there with 1 student.
EHS employs 36 teachers, 25 of which were NEW HIRES.
Cost per student is $14,650, MUCH more than the other schools.
There are three principals at that school.


FORD CITY

We are building a second gymnasium in Ford City on the third floor with a glass ceiling! WHY?
Gyms and cafeterias increase the education value for our students how?
The school is full of mold and raw sewage, it has severe structural issues – remember the falling balcony from a few years ago?!


KITTANNING

The Kittanning Junior High has more students in it grades 7-8 than 7-12 at Elderton.
We are going to close Kittanning Jr. High and merge it into the Senior High. Why?
Class sizes are going to be bumped to 30-36 while Elderton benefits from 5.


THE BUDGET

First they say our schools are over crowded at 90-95% capacity.
Now Chapp says that we are getting rid of nearly 70 positions due to LOW ENROLLMENT.
We can’t have it both ways – Over capacity and Low Enrollment.
Which one is it?
We are going to cut nearly the same amount of teachers that we hired to reopen Elderton. Elderton will stay the same, class size wise, but all other schools will have HIGHER class sizes due to this.


STAN CHAP

View the contract here

We have a Superintendent who is making as per his contract:

Salary History for Chapp: ( 3.9% increase for each year of contract)
Year 1: $150,000.00
Year 2: $155,850.00
Year 3: $161,928.15
Year 4: $168,243.35
Year 5: $174,804.84

*$3,000 annually in a tax sheltered annuity = $15,000 over 5 years

*$2,500 annually for holding a doctoral degree = $12,500 over 5 years

*$3,800 annually for disability insurance = $19,000 over 5 years.

* These figures do not include healthcare benefits he will receive

*116 unused sick days carried over from his past employment.

This totals to $857,326.34 for the contract life and DOES NOT include his fully-funded health care.


BILL BILL - aka William J. Williams

We have a SECOND Superintendent being paid $500 per day. That’s $2500 a week, $5000 plus a month, roughly $130,000 a year.


GARY MATTA

Our new Solicitor, hand picked by the current board majority.
He has a file at The Auditor General’s office for his misuse of funds in the Duquesne School District.
He pretty much bankrupted that district and ours is next.

Check out his file:  http://www.auditorgen.state.pa.us/Archives/Investigations/DUQ-Report.html

Armstrong County Voters, you are too smart to not see this for what it is.  You need to get out to vote tomorrow, and you need to vote for CHANGE!

Region I - Bethel, Burrell, Cadogan, Ford City, Ford Cliff, Manor, Manorville, North Buffalo and West Kittanning.  VOTE FOR: Paul Lobby and Larry Robb for the four year term and James Rearic for the two year term.

Region II - Applewald, East Franklin, Kittanning Boro, Rayburn, Washington, West Franklin and Worthington.  VOTE FOR:  Chris Choncek and Amy Lhote

Region III - Atwood, Boggs, Cowanshannock, Dayton, Elderton, Kittanning Twp, Pine, Plumcreek, Rural Valley, South Bend, Valley and Wayne.  VOTE FOR:  Stan Berdell

Six Questions With a Candidate - Dr. Paul Lobby

by Jennifer Willyard
I was lucky enough to email with Dr. Paul Lobby, who is one of the candidates running for ASD School Board Region 1.

Here are 6 questions that I asked of Dr. Lobby, with his unedited answers. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

1- Since there seems to be quite a bit of negativity within the district, what do you feel is going right with ASD at this time?

Answer: The teachers are doing great things with new academic programs. A reading remediation program was initiated by Larry Robb that help bring students up to proficiency more quickly. The fact that the voters seem to be so interested in the election is also very positive. It is overshadowing all the other races including the count commissioners’ race. There seems to be an outpouring of sentiment for change.

2- What are your ideas to improve student performance?

Answer: I was an educator for three years from 1972 to 1975. I will defer to expertise of the educators we employ and make decisions based on their recommendations. There are evidence based studies to show that outcomes can be improved using proven strategies.

3-What is your biggest concern with ASD?

Answer: We are on the verge of financial collapse.


4- What is your perspective of the referendum question that has been placed on the ballot?

Answer: It has received so much publicity that the voters can see that the board is trying to force them to choose between two very unpalatable options. I believe the voters realize that there are more than two choices. Life is not black and white.

5- What do you feel is the primary job of a school board?

Answer: Any elected board is responsible to carry out the wishes of the voters who elected them. The board should not micromanage the operations of the district but make long range, strategic decisions based on the best educational opportunities for the students within the ability of the taxpayers to afford those programs.

6- What attributes, talents and abilities will you bring to our district?

Answer: I am a former educator, a native of Ford City and nearly a life long resident. I place a high value on education and have served on many boards locally, regionally and statewide. Additionally, being self employed for the past 30 years has given me the experience required to deal with business decisions similar to those that the board encounters. My undergraduate training was in mathematics so I am very analytical in my decision making processes.

We look forward to responses to these same six questions that were sent to the other candidates.