August meeting recap

• August agenda on BoardDocs
• Video from the meeting from the Pike County Youth Coalition
• Delaware Valley holding its own despite state budget impasse from PoconoNews.Net

In the news: Elections board seeks recanvass of votes, PCYC webcasts first board meeting

In the Pike County Press:

• Board Of Elections Seeks Recanvass Of Spring Primary
• Business briefs - DV scholarship winner

In the Pike County Courier:

• Students ease board access

Note: according to Pike County Youth Coalition executive director Nick Troiano, School Board 2.0 is a project of the youth coalition, not a new, separate organization as the article in the Courier states.

In the news: School Board 2.0, Yolanda Goldsack

Hi everyone... It's been a while since I've been regularly updating the blog. Not too too much has been happening lately, but here's an update on some DV news around the Net.

In the Scranton Times-Tribune:
Pike County youth promote government transparency through the Internet

Pike County Courier roundup:
School district prepares fallback budget proposal
Breakfast Book Club at Shohola
TV techs share knowledge at Dingman-Delaware Middle School
DVHS Students of the Month

From the new Pike County Press:
Elementary Artists Win Big
Flapping Our Wings to First Grade
Candy Bar Fractions and Solid Figures
Farewell to Three Delaware Valley Elementary School Retirees
Goldsack Clears the Air

Update: From the River Reporter:
Goldsack criticizes commissioners and quits

July board meeting

Follow the board meeting as recorded and blogged on the School Board 2.0 Web site by Nick Troiano, executive director of the Pike County Youth Coalition.

Youth coalition to webcast tonight's board meeting

The Pike County Youth Coalition will webcast tonight's school board meeting as part of the group's School Board 2.0 project, PCYC director Nick Troiano said in an email.

"There are still a few kinks with some functionalities, but the live stream should be working," Troiano said.

The Web site for the School Board 2.0 project is www.dvsbonline.com.

Tonight's agenda is available from BoardDocs.

A transportation committee meeting starts at 6 p.m., and a safety meeting will follow at 6:30. The regular board meeting will begin at 7.

Update: RB for DV will liveblog any important developments in tonight's meeting, as they happen.

Tonight's meeting to be webcast by Youth Coalition

The Pike County Youth Coalition will stream tonight's 7 o' clock school board meeting at Dingman Delaware Middle School as part of its School Board 2.0 project, announced today on the PCYC blog.

The live stream will be available at the new Web site for School Board 2.0, dvsbonline.com. The original address, sb20.net, was just a test site.

The agenda and attachments for tonight's meeting are available on BoardDocs.

PCYC launches "School Board 2.0" Web site

The "School Board 2.0" project has launched a Web site at sb20.net.

The project is spearheaded by the Pike County Youth Coalition. The project aims to eventually stream video of Delaware Valley School Board meetings over the Internet, so that meetings could be watched remotely.

The Web site currently looks like it is under construction. PCYC members presented the project at the regular school board meeting earlier in May.

Meet the Candidates on April 29 at Shohola

This information is from an email high school administration sent to parents.

Meet the Candidates for Delaware Valley School Board

· Wednesday, April 29
· Shohola Elementary School

· 7-8 pm Candidates speak and answer questions
· 8-9 pm Meet & Greet over cake and coffee

Please join us to learn about the candidates seeking election on May 19.

Sponsored by DV Council PTA and the Pike County Youth Coalition

New political action committee to endorse school board candidates

A Web site for a political action committee called the "Future of Pike County" says the group will endorse up to five candidates in this year's Delaware Valley school board race.

"Future of Pike County is a recently established all-partisan, student-led political committee that supports candidates for local public office who offer strong leadership and support for policies that are in the long-term interest of Pike County," according to the Web site, which contains no other information but has forms to fill out to make a donation and "join us."

Marc Coda, DV class of 2006, serves as chairman, and Austin Lamac, another DV graduate, serves as treasurer, according to the group's Twitter account.

The Twitter account also announces that the group has mailed surveys to the candidates. The surveys are due by April 10 and the committee will make an endorsement by April 17, according to the Twitter account.

The Web site was registered by Pike County Youth Coalition executive director and Pike County Courier reporter Nick Troiano, DV class of 2007, according to the site's WHOIS records.

Record discusses use of Web to connect community with school

Delaware Valley school board meetings hit cyberspace

Read more from the Times Herald-Record

Courier roundup: Responses to Kupillas, already outdated top story on the board appointment

• Court decides board vacancy
• AND UPDATE (7:30 p.m.): Court decides board vacancy
• Spirited students
• Teddy Bears on parade at Shohola
• Smoky and the kindergarten
• Getting Physical with Education
• September’s best at Delaware Valley Middle School
• Pike County Youth Coalition response to John Kupillas
• Secrets, discrimination and irresponsibility
  

Stunning negativity in "Stunning Negativity"

I want to assure board member Diane French and the community that I do not believe Nick Troiano or I or anyone else has second guessed the amount of work she and the other board members undertake. I think we all can agree we see the outcome of the work by her - and of course by many others, too - and we appreciate their efforts.

⇒ READ MORE

Mrs. French lays out a list of the board's accomplishments since last November, and I am unsure why she took this defensive approach. I do not think Troiano's letter at all attacked her or the other board members for what they have contributed over the past year. I sure have not. What I think Troiano and I and many many others have raised are concerns about how the vacancy was handled (one of which Judge Chelak agreed with yesterday) and concerns about the letter her fellow board member John Kupillas wrote in last week's newspapers and the "stunning negativity" it casts upon the very people that attend and have graduated from Delaware Valley.

I believe Mrs. French knows I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to have the phone interview on Oct. 2. While I believe it was within my rights to request it, I could not say enough that evening to express my gratitude to the board for accommodating me.

Unfortunately, I think Mrs. French may misunderstand my intentions. I fully agree with her that the position is "not a summer joke or a way to make headlines." I expressed complete sincerity to the board about this position, and I still am completely sincere in my intentions to offer Mrs. French and her fellow board members a helping hand and to give back to the community and school that raised me. I never once requested that the board adapt to fit into my schedule. In fact, I offered to take on extra work if I ever missed a meeting. I never once mentioned a "social agenda" nor did I say it would ever supersede board duties if I was selected.

I was indeed upfront and admitted I may not be able to make all of the meetings in the fall if selected. Ironically, the candidate Mrs. French backed instead, Bernard Marasa, is in Florida and will not be at this week's meeting, at which she planned to vote for his appointment.

If I do not exemplify the seriousness, the time commitment and the passion that Mrs. French writes are necessary to make our school district the best, I don't know who does.

I hope she realizes my intentions are sincere and in the best interest of her, the rest of the board, the taxpayers, students and their parents, and everyone in the community – and that my interest in the vacancy only demonstrates how thankful I am to the school district and how serious I am about giving back to it.


Quick fact checks:

• “... we kept our word and did not raise taxes or cut programs.”
  

True, taxes were not raised, though the zero tax increase was caused largely by increased state funding from the gambling money that Mrs. French mentions, which is more luck than action by the board. Whole programs have not been cut, though many budgets, both academic and co-curricular, have been under scrutiny and have been tightened, according to teachers and club advisers I’ve spoken to.

• “... we are working diligently to provide a better quality education for all students from special education to the advanced programs.”
  

A broad statement that is lacking justification. How have they worked diligently to provide better quality special education? The special education chair, John Wladar, has resigned. He did not attend a meeting nor hold a special education committee meeting for the past six months. When he was first appointed chair, Wladar did not know what an IEP was and wanted to discuss confidential special education student matters in public.
In the past year, the special education subgroup at DV High School failed to meet Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) on the state PSSA tests. On the other end of the spectrum, Mrs. French has publicly spoken out against increasing the number and enrollments of Advanced Placement classes.

• “These changes will have an impact on the improvement of SAT and PSSA scores ...”
  

This improvement has not yet been measured. The only indication available now is that since Taxpayers United claimed a board majority, DVHS has fallen onto the state’s warning list for low PSSA scores among special education students. No improvement so far.

• “A sex education program was developed because of the lack of a sufficient program for years.”
  

Only after a major public controversy arose over it. This action was not initiated by the Taxpayers United members and was unanimously agreed upon.

• “Finally, the water tower will be completed and plans have been started for the elementary school in Milford.”
  

The water on the Dingman Delaware campus has already been meeting all standards and the primary school well has been producing pristine water. On an opinionated note: The costly water tower has nothing to do with the quality of education. This may be nothing more than a huge, expensive water storage facility that the taxpayers are footing the bill for - with money that could have been used directly on education.

The previous board had already initiated the new elementary school plans on the Westfall campus in *Westfall. The current board has stalled on getting anything done and is backing a plan that requires the demolition of the administrative offices, the current elementary school, the playground and a practice athletic field. The construction will disrupt the educational process and consume field space and limited parking spaces on the campus. The final proposed building will not solve any of the serious safety and traffic problems caused by overcrowdedness on the main DV campus. The project will cost as much as or more than the previous board’s original plan, which included new land to build a safe, separate elementary school campus.

• "Sue Casey, the previous board president, suggested we take a poll as to whether we would have a consensus as to the candidate."
  

Is this an attempt to pass the buck? Bob Goldsack is the president now: Where was his leadership? Mrs. French went along with it, too, and now is publicly denouncing it.

Diane French: "This position is not a summer joke."

These two letters appeared in this week's Pike County Dispatch.

I appreciated reading Kim Pabon's letter (below), which discusses the cronyism that was taking place on the school board until today, when the board lost its power to fill John Wladar's Sept. 18 vacancy because the board had not acted within the 30 days required by policy.

Sadly, the Dispatch selectively chose to disregard a letter I wrote in response to Kupillas, in addition to at least one other response letter written by a member of the Pike County Youth Coalition.

After hearing last night about board member Diane French's letter (below), I contacted her to request a personal conversation with her privately. She has not yet responded to my request, nor has fellow board member John Kupillas, who wrote a similarly "stunningly negative" letter last week and whom I have tried to contact multiple times. I would be grateful if the elected public officials who represent me and our community would respond and take care of their personal problems with me in a "mature" manner.

More on Specter

• Pork grilling for Arlen Specter in Milford: Town hall meeting questions bailout spending, power lines (read more from the Pocono Record)
  
• Senator Specter visits Delaware Valley (read more on the Pike County Youth Coalition blog)
  

My question: Why are so many seats empty in the photo from the Pocono Record? That auditorium should've been filled with students.

'08 grad responds to Kupillas

A member of the Pike County Youth Coalition, Ryan Jameson, wrote a letter to the editor responding to board member John Kupillas' letter in last week's Pike County Dispatch. The letter was posted on the PCYC blog.

In related news, I am seeking personal contact with Kupillas. I am hoping to speak to the elected public official personally about his letter to the editor, in a private and mature manner. I e-mailed board secretary Bill Hessling, who did not provide me an e-mail address or phone number for Kupillas, but assured me my request was passed along. I also have tried calling two different phone numbers for which Kupillas is listed in the phonebook and leaving messages, but I have not heard back from him yet.

PCYC posts press release regarding Kupillas' comments

The Pike County Youth Coalition is circulating a press release in which it condemns John Kupillas' comments printed in the Pike County Dispatch and Pike County Courier about the teenage mind's inability to connect with other people, make decisions and think rationally. 

From the press release:

Young people’s brains are developed enough to let us drive, vote, and even die in war. It is outrageous to claim that when it comes to having a say in the affairs of the school district we all deeply care about, that our brains are then not able to function as well as those of older people.

Note: PCYC has taken it upon itself to distribute this statement after reading Kupillas' letter to the editor. I am not a PCYC member and did not seek out this response from the organization.

Opinion: School board mishandles vacancy

President of the Pike County Youth Coalition, Nick Troiano, wrote a piece on the PCYC blog about how he believes the filling of John Wladar's vacancy has been mishandled so far. 

What do you think?

Contender for the vacancy: Make it seven

I just submitted my letter of interest for the vacancy on the school board. The deadline is today, according to the community bulletin page on dvsd.org. 

The poll on the right side of this page has been updated to reflect that, so make sure you vote now!

Other than myself, I personally support Jack Fisher, William Greenlaw or Sue Schor to take the position. Fisher and Schor have been tested by the electorate. Fisher has served on previous boards. Schor was the next highest vote getter in 2007. She was defeated by Sue Casey, Diane French, John Kupillas, John Wladar and John Wroblewski.

Denise Fey, another candidate for the spot, also served on the board previously.

Check out RB for DV's ongoing coverage of Wladar's vacancy.

The Pike County Youth Coalition blog also has mention of the vacancy.

Sex ed opinion hits home

A Milford resident wrote a succinct response to the Pike County Youth Coalition press release that was printed as a top headline in last week's Pike County Courier. 

Not only is it short, sweet and to the point, it's right.

Schools do share a part in the sexual/health education of students, but if these responsibilities are not shared in the home there is no hope for our kids to be educated.

Follow all of the sex ed news by viewing all labeled articles dealing with the topic. And remember to join the high school PTSA on Wednesday when it hosts a guest speaker on STDs.

Opinion: Homebound should still be offered, confusion over meeting statements

From the Pike County Youth Coalition blog:

Thanks to some investigation and reporting at rbfordv.blogspot.com, a quite unfortunate reality has surfaced regarding the school district's new alternative education program. As the media has reported, and we as have also published, the new alternative education program was supposed to be an option to expelled students IN ADDITION to the already practiced homebound education program.

Well, no, that's not the case and never was. How could have we all got it so wrong?

Alternative Education: The Catch (read more on the PCYC blog)