9 vie for 5 seats on school board

SOUTH COVENTRY » A slate of nine candidates is competing for five open slots on the Owen J. Roberts School Board.

Included on the Nov. 7 ballot are seven candidates vying for four open four-year terms, and two candidates competing for a two-year post.

Challengers for four-year terms include five newcomers and two incumbents attempting to retain their posts. Incumbents are James B. Frees II running on the Republican ticket, and Melissa C. Booth, the only candidate who cross-filed on both the Democratic and Republican ballots.

The five newcomers are hoping to beat the incumbents or fill one of the seats being vacated by William Kleinfelter and Kristina Barcus, neither of whom are not seeking a third four-year term.

The newcomers include three Democrats: Karel Minor, Don Foy and John Melniczek — and two Republicans: Leslie Proffitt and Robert Rasmussen.

Two candidates, Cathie Whitlock and Lonnie Fish, are seeking the two-year post, which will fill the unexpired term of longtime board member William LaCoff.

Since LaCoff resigned too late for his seat to be contested in the primaries, the Republican and Democratic parties each named a candidate to be listed on the ballot. Whitlock, a former board member, is the Democratic candidate, and Fish, who was defeated in the primaries for a four-year term, is listed on the Republican ticket.

The new board will be tasked with leading the district through a new superintendent transition. Former Superintendent Michael Christian resigned in July, and while the current board is working to name a new leader in December, the search is ongoing.

Frees, of East Coventry Township, is seeking a third term on the board. The parent of a high school student, Frees is a vice president and lender for a bank and the

co-founder and president of Coventry Rugby. He is a third generation board member, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather.

As the chairman of the finance committee for the last seven years, Frees said he has helped the district save almost $10 million by refinancing general obligation bonds, and has kept taxes within the Act I index without cutting programs. During the primary elections in May, Frees cited paying for unfunded mandates and the district’s contribution to the PSERS (Pennsylvania Public School Employees Retirement System) as challenges he is prepared to work on over the coming years.

Booth, of North Coventry, is a graphic designer and parent of four grown children who attended district schools. She is seeking a second four-year term.

Throughout her first term she chaired the board’s buildings and grounds committee, overseeing the construction of East Vincent Elementary School, which was completed last year, and East Coventry Elementary School, still being built. She said she played a key role in saving the district $13.75 million by encouraging the board to restart those projects when bids came in well over original cost estimates.

During the primaries, Booth said she is prepared to help the board deal with challenges related to population growth, keeping up with technology and the financial burden posed by PSERS.

Rasmussen, of South Coventry, is the father of middle school twins. He is a software developer who has a bachelor’s degree in commerce. For the past

several years he has regularly attended board meetings. During the primaries, Rasmussen pointed to his knowledge of district operations and his desire to listen to constituents as his key assets.

He noted several goals, including working on issues regarding standardized tests, upcoming labor contracts and maintaining a balance between fiscal responsibility and educational excellence.

Proffitt, also running on the Republican ticket, is a North Coventry mother of two elementary and preschool aged children. A 2008 graduate of Owen J. Roberts High School, she works as an assistant buyer for QVC. During the primaries she had linked her campaign with Fish.

As the parent of a special needs child, she aims to provide the board with a personal viewpoint on special education issues. A fairly recent graduate of the district, she also hopes to bring a fresh perspective to the board. If elected, she will work with the board to resolve financial challenges, but she also noted a desire to fairly evaluate parent concerns, including those raised about school start times.

Minor is a Warwick Township father of three teenage daughters attending the high school and middle school. He is the CEO of Humane Pennsylvania.

On a candidate response form, Minor stated that his professional background has provided him with experience in board governance, as well as working “collaboratively with varied constituencies, and working effectively with government officials in policy, funding, and legislative arenas.”

He also said he would advocate for the arts, gifted and special education, fiscal discipline and educational

equity. If elected, his main goal would be to work with the board to provide stability during the superintendent transition, and “to ensure that the next superintendent has a positive and effective working relationship with the board, district staff, parents and taxpayers, and students.”

Foy, a retired East Coventry resident, formerly worked as an IT director for Boeing. He has five grandchildren, and has worked as a volunteer at East Coventry Elementary School for the past two years.

Foy was motivated to run by both his positive experience volunteering and his interest in assuring that all children receive “the best education and personal development possible,” he said on a candidate response form. While working for Boeing, he handled budgets, personnel and funding issues, and those are skills he is eager to share as a school board member.

If elected, Foy said hopes to establish transparency and “create a two way dialog between board and community members.”

Melniczek, an East Vincent father of two children in the middle school and high school, is a veterinarian and the director for the Animal Rescue League of Berks County.

He believes his experience hiring personnel and making complex financial decisions for his animal hospital would make him a valuable asset to the board. He also has educational experience, having taught veterinary students at the University of Pennsylvania.

He was motivated to run for election because, as a 21year district resident and parent of two students, he is a key stakeholder. He said finding a new superintendent who will remain with the district would be his main goal. Pointing out

that the district has had numerous superintendents over the past 10 years, he said it is important for the board to retain professionals “who will lead our district many years into the future so that long-term goals for success can be set and achieved.”

Fish, of Chester Springs, is an attorney with two children aged one and five. Defeated in the primaries for a four-year term, he’s now listed on the Republican ballot for a two-year seat.

During the primaries he expressed his desire to work to make OJR “one of the upper echelon school

districts.” He noted improving academic excellence, looking into school start times, and ensuring fiscal responsibility as major issues. He raised concerns about what he sees as a lack of accessibility on the current board and vowed to be accessible, fiscally responsible and to be a strong voice for parents.

Whitlock, of South Coventry, is a former OJR school board member who served for 18 years, from 1977-1994. She formerly worked as a school nurse in Pottstown, and currently has three grandchildren in district schools.

She believes her school board experience, combined with her five years on the West Chester University Council of Trustees, have uniquely qualified her for assisting with a new leadership transition — a process she has been through several times before.

If elected, her main goal will be to help the district hire the best superintendent possible. She said she will work with the board to develop a consensus on what qualities the new leader should have, and seek to find someone who will remain with the district for many years.