POTTSTOWN PA – Last October, when the Pottsgrove School District Board of School Directors had to choose between what it considered as two qualified volunteers who wanted to fill the unexpired term of a departing board member, it opted for the first one who expressed interest in the job.
It now has another chance to fill a second vacant board seat. Will it follow the same logic? That question could be answered soon, maybe even tonight (Tuesday, May 11, 2010) at 7:30 during the board’s public meeting at Pottsgrove High School, Kauffman Road, Pottstown PA.
- This event has been added to The Post calendar.
Candidates for a Pottsgrove school board vacancy, David Faulkner, left, and Darryl Hendershot, spoke two weeks ago to board members.
Director Robert Lindgren last month announced his intention to resign from the board because he had been called to military service in Afghanistan. Then, just two weeks ago, Lindgren’s potential successors – district residents David Faulkner and Darryl Hendershot – appeared before the board to re-introduce themselves.
It was Faulkner and now seated board member Patricia Grimm who were interviewed by the board last year, when it needed to select a replacement for re-locating director Keith McCarrick. Board members were caught off guard by Faulkner’s arrival; Grimm, who was invited to apply for the position, was the only candidate they expected to meet. The resulting public vetting was, at best, awkward.
Ultimately the board chose Grimm, in part because, as Treasurer Fred Remelius expressed at the time, “We received (her) application first.”
Faulkner’s application might be considered first-in for the Lindgren vacancy. The second candidate, however, is no stranger either. Hendershot is a former director and former board president who has a years-long history of involvement in district politics and operations. Both candidates have children enrolled in the district. Both have been active in student events and programs at district schools. Both are Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township residents.
The board is not bound by any precedent in making its selection, but select it must.
“We need to close the vacancy as soon as possible” to finish district business before the end of the school year, current President Michael Neiffer said during the board’s April 27 meeting. Whoever is named as the newest director will have their hands full quickly, with decisions awaiting on a budget, an impending property tax hike, and the reconstruction of Ringing Rocks Elementary School.
It is not yet known if a decision on filling the Lindgren vacancy is on the board agenda tonight. As of 6 a.m. today (Tuesday), the agenda was not yet available for download from the district website. When an agenda is posted, it often can be downloaded here.
Also unknown is whether the board expects to decide tonight on where Ringing Rocks students will be housed during their building’s renovation.
Directors have, until now, discussed only two choices: leasing the St. Pius X High School building on Keim Street, Pottstown, or using modular classrooms installed at the district Middle School campus. Parents of Ringing Rocks students heavily favor a Pius lease; the district has been negotiating over it with the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for about two months.
Related (to the Pottsgrove Board of School Directors’ May 11 meeting):
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