Democrats running for seats on
the Unionville-Chadds Ford School Board from Region C are calling for tone and
priority changes on the board. They think the current board members don’t
understand what’s important and they’re getting support from a former U.S.
congressman.
Gregg Lindner, of Chadds Ford
Township, and Kathy Do, of Pennsbury, earned their position on the ballot
through a successful write-in campaign during the primary election this past
spring.
Do said she’s running because
she’s seen a shift in the board’s priorities over the years.
“I believe, absolutely, that
the current board members do consider our children’s education to be a
priority, but I do not believe that they currently believe it to be the highest
priority,” she said in an interview held during a fund-raiser at the home of
Steve and Carolyn Mohr in Pennsbury Township.
Do said the recent school
budget demonstrates how priorities have shifted away from what she thinks is
right.
“This past year, the board had
the option to approve a budget at 1.4 percent [tax increase], the 1.4 percent
increase that was the cap [without the need for a referendum], what most
districts in the state were doing. They chose not to do that. Understandably,
they said let’s stay below the cap,” Do said. “They ended up passing a budget
at 1.1 percent. In order to do that, they had to lay off something like 20
support staff, many people who have worked for the district for years and have
a very valuable role in the district [such as] reading support staff, people
who work to help the teachers.”
She added that shortly after
the layoffs, $800,000 was restored to education in the state budget. The board
could have rehired the people laid off, but didn’t.
Do said the board wants to cut
costs, something she accepts as necessary, but that it must be done in ways
that don’t hurt children.
“The majority of people on the
board are looking at the concerns of people in the district who want to move
away from the educational vision of a person like [recently retired
Superintendent] Sharon Parker…They’re looking to cut back our programs and what
I want to do is to be the voice of the person who always, always, always puts
the children first.”
(Chadds Ford Democratic Party
Chairman Rob Porter said in a recent email message that it was school board
actions that led Parker to retire.)
Do said education must be the
top priority with an emphasis on curriculum changes and new technologies that
could save money in the long run. She would also like to see the district
employ naming rights as a way generate revenue.
“Why can’t our beautiful new
auditorium be named after a reputable local business,” she asked.
Do, a freelance writer and
public policy analyst, wrote a critique of No Child Left Behind — the
challenges and the benefits — with recommendation on how it could be
strengthened for the Rockland County New York legislature. She is also the vice
president of the Unionville-Chadds Ford Education Foundation.
Lindner, the executive vice
president and chief research officer for Arbitron, a media research company,
served on the board temporarily to fill in for Ed Wandersee who moved out of
the district. He served until Frank Murphy defeated him in a special election.
Lindner wants to see a change in tone on the board.
“All the discussions that have
taken place around whether there’s revenue enhancement or whether there are
budget decisions that are being made, some of the areas that I had talked about
previously, when I was on the board briefly, did not ever rise to a discussion
at the board. So, for instance, we talked about naming rights as one manner in
which to get more revenue for the district. That has really not progressed,” he
said.
Lindner, like Do, thinks
current priorities are wrong.
“There’s not been any movement
on [the naming rights idea] in the past two years. Instead, the discussion has
been more around user fees for students...So there’s been a different approach
about how to look for different revenues in the district and I’d like to see a
broader discussion about that.”
Lindner said his business
background makes him ideal for the position.
“I have an understanding of
running large budgets, being somebody who’s run a $70 million business. It’s
given me the opportunity to manage large groups of people, look for how you
bring about consensus in a constructive way to move forward with different
projects. It’s something I believe is not presently on the board and it’s
important to have that kind of view on the board and that’s why I believe that
kind of background from me and with Kathy’s background on the educational
programs makes for a very potent combination of the two of us running for the
positions.”
At least two-dozen people
attended the July 8 fund-raiser, with some wearing buttons reading, “I’m a
parent and I vote.”
Among those supporting Do and
Lindner is former U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak.
“I think they understand the
proper balance we have here in America, in our Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and
right here, right where school districts really matter,” Sestak said. “We
appreciate rugged individualism. We’d love to have individual opportunity, but
if we don’t balance it with the common wealth, the greater effort of all to
have a fair opportunity, we aren’t going to make it.”
Sestak, a retired admiral,
cited statistics that indicate 40 percent of Americans who are between 20 and
40 years old are functionally illiterate. He told a story of how, as a young
ensign, he dealt with five senior noncommissioned officers — chief petty
officers — only one of whom had graduated from high school. By the end of his
naval career, enlistees did not reach that rank without at least an associate’s
degree.
All three seats form Region C —
made up of Chadds Ford and Pennsbury townships — are up for election. Seeking
re-election are Timotha Trigg and Frank Murphy. Paul Price is stepping down.
Filling out the Republican ticket is Sharon Jones. Murphy is also running as a
Democrat.
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
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While Chairman Porter is entitled to his opinion, I as a Democrat and person who received the Party’s recent mailing, am dismayed at the disingenuous suggestion that Superintendent Parker resigned due to school board actions. She is a woman who has displayed class, dignity, and respect when dealing with the many issues she faced as superintendent. Do not use her as a basis for your propaganda. Give her the same respect and take her at her word that she is retiring to spend time with her children and grandchildren. You do not engender goodwill from members of your own party by tossing around innuendo that has no basis in fact.
Kathy Do, you have my vote!
FINALLY, someone who has the ability, vision, and experience to see not only the big picture, but to understand the SERIOUS consequences (violation of EEOC law = loss of state funds) of the decisions to lay off (for the first time in UCFSD history) the long-term, all female, all over 40 employees, and the failure to re-instate them when the $800,000 (!) of state money was restored.
Wake up people.
Jeanne-Marie Curtis
BBA HR Management/Employment
21 years resident of Chadds Ford
Why does WHODAT smell?
– CFL has a policy of allowing anonymous posts and does not check the content of what is published – fertile conditions for the usual right wing dirty tricks.
– Sound Democrats do not publish anonymously – this is something more in line with Fox Lies.
– Can you imagine a Democrat with the moniker WHODAT09? The name alone conjures up light beer, NASCAR racing and right wing rednecks.
– The prose has the smell of something written by the Chadds Ford Republican committee. Actually, it smells even more of the Aston style. Ponderous and probably not withing the capabilities of a WHODAT.
Turning to the gist of WHODAT’S note. He/she/it is the one ladling on the innuendo -the innuendo that Sharon Parker’s departure had nothing to do with the redneck takeover of the School Board. This simply defies rationality – Chairman Porter’s interpretation is obviously the most probable. It is therefore up to WHODAT to provide compelling evidence that our Chairman is wrong. Taking a public official at their word (no matter how nice and concientious the official) defies experience.
But then, as one of Bush’s acolytes so famously said: “We do not deal with reality; we create our own reality”
In the unlikely event that I am wrong about WHODAT and that he/she/it is willing to identify itself as more than a DINO, I offer an apology and a chat over drinks provided by me
For reasons hard to fathom, the Editor has changed the attribution of the comment “Disinformation” from WHODAT09 to MinorsMom.
So, in my earlier comment (see immediately below), for WHODAT09 read MinorsMom.
This, of course, gets us no closer to determining whether he, she or it is a bona fide Democrat. One could venture the guess that it is a she but even that is risky in this day and age.
[Editor’s Note: The change was made at the reader’s request before there were any insulting remarks.]
Once again the Editor’s communication skills leave something to be desired.
Consider: [Editor’s Note: The change was made at the reader’s request before there were any insulting remarks.]
What does this mean? Who has made insulting remarks? Is it the Editor, is it me or is it WHODAT?
Clearly, it cannot be me, since my response was to WHODAT (the change to MinorsMom had not yet been made).
In any event, we are taking our eye off the ball; the only inuslt we need to be considering is the insult perpetrated by MinorsMum – the increasingly likely case of a Republican set of lies under a hidden identity.
If that is the case, it represents the kind of immorality that has been rotting our country, with increasing rapidity, over the last 30 years (i.e. since the first village idiot entered the White House).
Mr. Jesson, the request to change WHODAT was made at my request. Fact 1: I am a registered Democrat, have been since I registered to vote at age 18, have lived in the Commonwealth all my life, hate NASCAR, and believe the first village idiot to enter the White House was George W. Bush. Fact 2: I am not the only person who does not use my name on this site or other sites, so if you wish to have that policy changed, perhaps your request would best be directed to the powers that be at CF Live. Opinion 1: Your responses to my opinion–and it is only that, an opinion–seem to me to reflect a common problem: the seeming incivility that permeates society today. You certainly have the right to disagree with me, but you do not have the right to call into question my character any more than I have the right to call into question your personal character based on your responses or opinions in this forum. To paraphrase, “I may not agree with what you say, but I shall defend to the death your right to say it.” Opinion 2: Sharon Parker no longer is a public figure. I would hope that all candidates for school board, their supporting constituencies, and the leadership of all political parties would let this woman enjoy her retirement in peace. On this issue, I’m taking my toys and going home now. I will register my opinion in the voting booth. And thank you for your kind invitation for drinks, Mr. Jesson, but I don’t drink–had my one sip of light beer and didn’t like it much. MinorsMom