Challengers make their case
‘North Penn Neighbors for Progress’ Fusco, Kassa, Stoll, Warren seeking four-year terms on board
A team of five Democrats are running together as the “North Penn Neighbors for Progress,” seeking seats on the North Penn School District School Board.
Candidates Christian Fusco, Jonathan Kassa, Jenna Ott, Tina Stoll, and Mark Warren will all be on the Nov. 7 ballot, with Ott seeking a two-year term and the others seeking four years.
All of the candidates were asked the same questions, and below are their answers:
Christian Fusco
Describe your background, and why you are running for North Penn School Board
I decided to run for the school board because as a parent of two students at Inglewood Elementary, I am personally invested in the future direction of our district. My professional experience will bring an informed voice to the board. I started a career in special education 18 years ago, teaching students with hearing impairments. My career has allowed me to work in a variety of settings, alongside parents, teachers and administrators at all grade levels. I recently completed a master’s program and received a degree in educational administration. I understand firsthand the issues that schools face as both a teacher and a parent. Explain your thoughts and position on the following subjects:
THE DISTRICT’S ONGOING BUDGET SITUATION
It is the job of the school board to protect the community’s in-
vestment in its schools. I think it is important to make long-term, strategic planning decisions that safeguard taxpayers now and in the future. For example, we should consider infrastructure and facilities improvements that utilize green technology and will generate cost savings to taxpayers over time. I support addressing the competitive bidding process for all contractors, both blue and white collar. This would be a change in practice. Finally, I support expanding a program that allows tax relief waivers to seniors on fixed incomes and the disabled by expanding the relief granted and offering the program to renters, not just homeowners.
FULL-DAY KINDERGARTEN
68% of districts in Montgomery County currently offer some form of fullday kindergarten. North Penn is among the minority of districts that isn’t offering these programs to its youngest students. Besides the obvious educational benefits of full-day kindergarten including academic and social skill development, this investment will make North Penn a more attractive landing spot for young families who are looking to move into a good school district. Saddling young families with the costs and burdens of before and after care, could make moving to North Penn cost prohibitive, and weaken our tax base. Home values could be affected if our community is viewed as less desirable than surrounding districts such as Hatboro-Horsham, Wissahickon and Upper Dublin who offer these essential programs to their youngest children. Full-day kindergarten programs are an investment in our students’ and taxpayers’ future. What other issue(s) do you feel are important to the district?
The Republican candidates have decided it is in their best interest to vilify teachers and pit their interests against the interests of seniors in our community. After decades of control, there is a sense of entitlement among the Republican board that is misplaced. I believe the school board needs to represent all stakeholders in our community, regardless of one’s political leanings. That is why I would support moving our meetings out of the ESC building and into community schools. I support allowing public comment at the beginning and end of meetings, so the community can reflect on the agenda that’s been presented and I will strive to make our meetings a place where all feel comfortable to come and share their perspective on how to move the district forward. We can achieve great things by working together.
Online and social media pages and channels:
Website: http://northpennneighborsforprogress.com/ Facebook: • https://www.facebook.com/fusco4npenn/ • https://www.facebook.com/NorthPennNeighborsForProgress/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/NPN4Progress Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/np_neighbors_for_progress/
Jonathan Kassa
Describe your background, and why you are running for North Penn School Board
While serving as president of a community association navigating the contentious development of the Route 202 Parkway, and as the executive director of a national organization facilitating significant bipartisan federal legislation, I learned that, when building consensus, common sense is not political.
After years of trying to engage a reactive school board, I realized that decades-long partisan political decisions needed to end. I will bring communication, curiosity, transparency and data-driven decisions to this board in order to ensure that accountability of the school board exists to a diverse set of community stakeholders.
I’ve led national initiatives to increase openness and accountability for campus community safety, justice and victim support. I currently serve as a national Director of Higher Education at North America’s largest security service provider and was entered as a “valuable leader in campus safety” in the 2008 (HR) Congressional Record. Over the years, I’ve been directly responsible for tens of millions of dollars of public funds and the delivery of high-quality services and measurable results.
Prior to working in higher education, I was a senior executive who developed and directed juvenile justice, social service and education programs at a multi-state nonprofit organization. In 2004, I was honored with the Dare To Soar Award by a county organization for my “dedication and vision” toward improving the lives of youth and families in Maryland.
My wife, Cathy, and I have been married 20 years and are proud residents of Montgomery Township since 2001. We have two children in the North Penn School District. I serve as a board member for the Network of Victim Assistance Bucks County. I graduated from Penn State with an undergraduate degree in history and earned a master’s in public administration from Villanova University where I’ve been an adjunct instructor and MPA Department Advisory Board member. Explain your thoughts and position on the following subjects: THE DISTRICT’S ONGOING BUDGET SITUATION
Decades of short-term, reactive savings have resulted in long-term increases in spending. Look no further than the impending $100 million-plus on repairs at the high school as an example of myopic planning threatening our district’s fiscal health. How can our district raise taxes 9 out of 10 years yet still face ongoing fiscal crisis?
After decades, the current board and their candidates have no foresight of challenges or imagination for creative solutions. They’d rather demonize teachers while taking credit for the results of teachers. In contrast, we will build consensus by providing simple, publicly available spending summary details that the current board doesn’t offer. Of course, not everyone can agree with every spending decision a school board makes, but the community will know exactly what we’re doing and why.
Passivity, rather than coordinated, proactive action, is the current board’s approach to any issue – whether the pension crisis or the recent air conditioning debacle, and so on. We will change the current business model: every large contract will be competitively bid and the district will see an increase in the value of its contracts, unlike now when special interests donate and don’t see their contracts challenged by a free market process.
FULL-DAY KINDERGARTEN
Our opponents boast about our district’s success; yet, or all we spend, why aren’t we number one in the state? We deserve much better return on investment for our tax dollars.
Over 70 percent of the 500 school districts in Pennsylvania offer full-day kindergarten. As our team has canvassed the school district, we found that there is a very high demand for full-day kindergarten by working families in NPSD. With the current curriculum demands being increased at all grade levels, it makes sense to help our young children to be prepared for the full-day experience.
Some of the increased costs of offering full day kindergarten can be offset with decreased transportation costs, by not having mid-day bus runs and applying and by applying for grants, such as the “Ready To Learn” Block Grant offered by the state. The ability to compete with neighboring school districts that already offer full day kindergarten, will help property owners, by making sure our property values remain high. One of the most important considerations for young families buying a home is the quality of the school district and all it has to offer, which maintains and increases home values of every type of taxpayer.
What other issue(s) do you feel are important to the district? Explain your thoughts and positions (200 words)
NPSD is the only Montgomery County school district that doesn’t conduct a climate survey to gain insights about perceptions and realities of our school’s strengths and potential risks. North Penn Neighbors for Progress will transform the district from a culture of silence to a culture of safety.
A basic review of NPSD’s policies, regulations and practices raises major questions about the current board leadership’s direction. Districts nationwide are being sued for lack of supporting the rights of student victims. Damage to the reputation of a district’s mission is as significant as the multi-million dollar impact on budgets. A national story recently broke about Pennridge School District’s alleged pattern of neglecting sexual assault victim’s rights and needs.
Our school board will set the highest standards to learn about the climate in our schools and what students, families, faculty and administrators undoubtedly must address.
Saving money by not developing robust programs is not acceptable. Ignorance is not an excuse, morally or legally. The best education is worthless if a student does not have a healthy body and mind.
Your campaign website, and/or social media accounts:
www.northpennneighborsforprogress.com
https://www.facebook.com/JKNorthPennChange
https://www.facebook.com/NorthPennNeighborsForProgress/
Tina Stoll
Describe your background and why you are running for school board:
I am a NPHS grad myself, Class of ’83. I am a lifelong resident of the district who not only grew up in the district but also settled here to raise her own family. My husband, Pete, and I have three sons, Pete, Andrew and Eric – who all went through NPSD. They received an excellent education and were afforded many opportunities. I appreciate the education they received and would like to see the opportunities that my sons had, continue to be available to the students coming through the district now.
In addition to wanting to serve my community, like many others, I’m deeply concerned about the threats to public education. At the Federal level we have the Trump/DeVos agenda. Mrs. DeVos was instrumental in the promotion of charter schools and vouchers to the detriment of public schools, in her home state of Michigan. It would be shame if her agenda was allowed to prevail in PA. At the state level, there are the issues of pension reform and property tax relief and a State Legislature that seems incapable of passing any meaningful legislation. In this time of hyperpolarization of politics at all levels of government — including local government, I believe that we need school board members that are willing to work together in a bipartisan fashion, to balance the needs students, taxpayers and senior citizens. Explain your thoughts and position on the following subjects: THE DISTRICT’S ONGOING BUDGET SITUATION
My North Penn Neighbors for Progress running mates and I recognize that controlling spending isn’t simply a matter of cutting costs to the bone. Our top priority is to increase communication and transparency — we will promote inclusion among all groups within the district and we will expect the voters of NPSD to hold us accountable for the decisions we make. We will also lead the way with other school districts in the state, to pressure our state legislators to enact responsible pension reform that is fair and equitable to all involved. One of the ways we would do that is to ACTIVELY participate in the Pennsylvania School Board Association — a group whose purpose is to lobby our legislators in Harrisburg for matters regarding public education. As an example of squandered opportunity — a school board cannot make decisions on its own regarding pension reform. The PSBA, however, can issue recommendations to legislators via its platform committee. NPSD does not participate in the creation of this platform, therefore it has no voice in any of the recommendations being made.
FULL-DAY KINDERGARTEN
Currently over 70% of the 500 school districts in Pennsylvania offer fullday kindergarten. As the North Penn Neighbors for Progress candidates have canvassed the school district over the past year, we have found that there is a very high demand for fullday kindergarten by working families in NPSD. With the current curriculum demands being increased at all grade levels, in just makes sense to help our young children to be prepared for the full day experience. Some of the increased costs of offering full day kindergarten can be offset with decreased transportation costs, by not having mid-day bus runs and applying for grants, such as the “Ready To Learn” Block Grant offered by the state. The ability to compete with neighboring school districts that already offer full-day kindergarten, would also help property owners, by making sure our property values remain high – one of the most important considerations for young families buying a home is, after all, the quality of the school district. Other issue(s) important to the school district:
Our number one goal as a slate, is to increase communication between the board and its constituents. We will be independent and fiscally responsible. We will be transparent with our decisions and attempt to plan long-term and strategically to get the best value for every dollar spent rather than making short-term, reactionary decisions. We love our community and want to make sure that NPSD is the best that it can be. It is time for a change — to stop doing things “because this is the way we’ve always done it” and to start having leadership with a vision.
For more information on our slate, please visit NorthPennNeighborsforProgress.com or our North Penn Neighbors for Progress Facebook page.
Mark Warren
Describe your background, and why you are running for North Penn School Board
I am an organizational change manager and business process analyst for a private company that supports government IT services. My family moved into Towamencin last year and my wife and I have two young children attending Inglewood Elementary. I am running for school board Director because I believe schools are the heart of our communities and I want to safeguard public education. I believe the current board has gotten too comfortable and missed a lot of opportunities to save taxpayer money by not engaging in long-term strategic planning. Combined with nobid contracts, this has led to higher costs and constant delays for infrastructure repairs. I also believe a school board should foster a climate of open communication focused on transparency of policy and spending decisions. Explain your thoughts and position on the following subjects: THE DISTRICT’S ONGOING BUDGET SITUATION
There is no doubt the rising impact of the state pension crisis is causing strife with budget planning but the opposing candidates seem resigned to the situation. They point out how they aren’t responsible for creating the pension and it is beyond their control. Yes, the pension is a sunk cost but rather than remain passive and “hope for a miracle” as one of the members remarked at the end of the May 9th budget meeting, there should be an active engagement with district staff and government officials to affect areas the board does have influence. Putting an end to no-bid contracts and making the procurement process competitive to gain the best value for professional services would be a good start. Finding ways to expand the boards influence with legislators would also be a worthwhile endeavor.
FULL-DAY KINDERGARTEN
70 percent of school districts in our region have full-day kindergarten (FDK) and have the same budget constraints we do. If we want to expand our school revenue without raising taxes, we need to attract more families to the district. Given a choice between a home with FDK and one without, most families will choose the former. Of course, FDK requires intensive planning and research to make sure the implementation is effective and valuable. My fellow candidates and I will rise to the challenge of developing a cost effective way to bring FDK to our district so we remain competitive and home values are protected. What other issue(s) do you feel are important to the district?
Attending the school board meetings I have heard a lot of parent concerns regarding classroom temperatures, student interactions with staff raising diversity and cultural awareness issues, delays in getting needed projects resourced, classroom size issues and a general sense that parents and district staff don’t feel like they are being heard regardless of issue. Each of these items source back to earlier points regarding poor planning and a lack of transparency and communication. During my time campaigning for this role, I often asked folks why they don’t attend school board meetings. It was a common to hear statements about how it was a waste of time as things didn’t change or they didn’t even feel welcome in the room. That has to change.
Your campaign website, and/or social media accounts:
https://www.facebook. com/Warren4NPSB/
http://northpennneighborsforprogress.com/