NOTICE The School Directors of the School District of Borough of Morrisville will hold a Special Meeting on July 20, 2011, 7:30 pm, for the purpose of approving the Grandview Elementary School Paving Bid and such other lawful matters as may come before the Board. The School District intends to award an Act77/39 Performance Contract at this Special Meeting. Following is pertinent information regarding that Contract: Owner: School District of Borough of Morrisville, 550 W. Palmer Street, Morrisville, PA 19067 Contractor: GreenTech Energy Services 122 E. Kings Highway, Suite 503, Maple Shade, NJ 80852 Sub-Contractors: CM3 Building Solutions, Clear Sound Contract Terms: Total Contract Installed Cost = $787,683.00 All Act 77 information is available in the Business Office. The meeting will be held in the LGI Room of the Intermediate/Senior High School located at 550 W. Palmer Street, Morrisville, PA. Marlys Mihok Board Secretary 1 t Jy 3
Appeared in: Bucks County Courier Times on Sunday, 07/03/2011
I found this: http://www.greentechenergy.com/index.asp
On the website it says: "GreenTech Energy Services GreenTech Energy Services is an innovative energy services company that provides its customers with cost-effective energy reduction solutions. With dramatic increases in the cost of energy, GreenTech is uniquely positioned to provide our customers with extremely attractive cost savings while at the same time upgrading their buildings environmental systems. From coast to coast we have provided our customers with guaranteed energy reduction solutions in over 4,000 commercial buildings.
Financing: Our programs can be purchased directly or financed through a lease purchase option. This option allows a customer upgrade their systems with no money upfront, payments can be spread out over a period of time which, in many cases can provide a positive cash flow."
Under this it lists the following services: Lighting Retrofit Solutions Building Automation Systems Solar Power Systems Motor Control Systems HVAC Replacement
Although I did not read everything on the website yet, what I did read says nothing about paving.
did you see your budget cut for this year? ask your board on 7/20 what the reduced budget numbers represent for your Fall start of school? Angry yet www.angryyet.net
I think the GreenTech, CM3 Building Solutions, Clear Sound $800k stuff is the Act 77 lighting project and sound in the auditorium. It says all Act 77 info is available in the Business Office. Anyone want to pay a visit?
Does anyone know how much area they are planning on paving? That price seems awfully high to me. At $5/sq foot, that would be 157,536 square feet (not quite 400x400).
According to this online calculator (which I realize is not an accurate way to do things), in Trenton, NJ, the cost per sq ft should be $2.55, which, at that cost, would get us 308,895 square feet, or about 555x555. Looking at Google Map of the property, the existing asphault, including the basketball court, is around 30,000 sq ft.
Introduction The Guaranteed Energy Savings Act (GESA) is provided for under Chapter 37 of Act 57 (1998), and as amended by Act 77 (2003). The Act provides a procurement tool that seeks to set up a win-win situation between the university and a qualified Energy Services Company (ESCO). The GESA process is unlike the typical design-bid-build process in which the lowest responsible bidder wins. The low-bidder process dictates an incentive to provide the least amount of work and cheapest hardware to narrowly meet the project requirements described within an Invitation for Bids or a Request for Proposal. The GESA procurement process selects the ESCO who is the best qualified, provides the best value, and is the best fit for the university. Moreover, the end result is a performance contract in which the ESCO provides design-build services, some operations and maintenance services, and an energy savings guarantee for a period of up to 15 years. The concept of a GESA is that the cost savings arising from energy savings on an annual basis are enough to pay the debt on financing for the construction/installation of the energy savings measures themselves. The original Act allowed for a 10-year cost-recovery/payback period. The amended Act now allows for a 15-year payback. Utilizing the GESA procurement process provides universities with a method to obtain capital improvements by superior providers, not the cheapest. Additionally, the GESA process provides universities with a performance contract in which the provider guarantees performance, in the form of energy savings. And lastly, the GESA process provides universities with a funding source for these capital improvements, rather than taking the funds out of operating budgets or capital budgets. While the industry practice is often for the ESCO or a third party to arrange financing for the project, universities will normally use bond financing. The GESA procurement process is fairly new to most facility managers. Process steps and standard documentation have been put in place to assist facility managers to procure the best ESCO for a given facility’s needs. This Appendix provides basic information on GESAs and the ESCO procurement process. More detailed information is available from the Department of General Services, and the State System’s Facilities Management Office has developed comprehensive guidance and sample documents for use by universities.
this was posted on the old blog 10/09. a great posting to repost for this years election...just replace Morrisville Pride with Morrisville Matters and you have the focused group of parents and community/school volunteers working hard to make the necessary changes on the school board for the future of MHS. *************************** An open letter to Mr. Buckman We received this letter from a former student as a response to Mr. Buckman's recent piece in the BCCT. ... It is a great summary of how the students and the community feel about what this board has done to the town and district ....***
Mr. Buckman, ...You stated "...They are on a mission to undermine what we have accomplished in two years and tarnish the reputation of our school district. To get elected!" Mr. Buckman, Damon Miller is one of the most passionate pro- Morrisville School District men I have ever met. He has joined committees to try to make our district better; he comes to concerts and sporting events because he CARES. Damon Miller and his "noisy band" want people to care again about Morrisville and feel PRIDEFUL when they say "I go to Morrisville." You know what happened when your current majority got elected? My class said "At least we won't get affected by this board." I counted the years and started to feel sorry for the students behind us because I knew that you would hurt their education somehow. This proves that it just happened quicker than I expected.......
We need to show that we care about education. Families might actually move in and STAY in Morrisville. Businesses see a rising population and move in to town. Morrisville is back.
we know you heard the complaints about the “sick” M. R. Reiter building, a building you ignored now during two terms on the board of education. Before the explosion, that school building DID affect the performance of the students. ... But, I will refer back to "Damon's Group" for a second and refer to Pride. Would you go to work every day and try hard for a boss who doesn't care about you? I didn't think so. But guess what, that is what you are expecting the students to do. We all believe that the school board doesn't care about us. All we hear at MHS is "money, taxes, money," and not "students, students, students." The kids may not be doing well because they feel you don't care: So... why should they?
Let me finish on this last passage: "I know what it takes to be a good school board member. It takes responsibility, common sense, and the ability to listen." ...So PLEASE start on that and maybe we can get going in the right direction. If you actually felt responsibility, the school would have been maintained right in the first place...If you had common sense, you would see most of the problems are because of the school board’s disinterest in education and its lack of caring about "Student John" instead of how caring much anonymous Student #123 costs to educate and how that cost can that be lowered.
If you listened, you would know that ...they are in this election because they want what is best for the kids and not just their wallets. .... Why? Because they genuinely care about the school. as STUDENTS. Morrisville Pride not only wants there to be a MHS today, but a MHS in the future because they care about ****************
Imagine that, a letter from 2009 but the words still ring true in 2011. A board who does not listen, does not communicate, does not care about the students and looks at everything as a number and not a person! VOTE Kartal, Parker, Miller and Stoneburner on November 8, 2011! We communicate, We listen, We engage, We embrace the community, We participate and We bring honesty and integrity to the table!
Listening skills? At the last board meeting, Buckman attributed a question about the Grandview trailers to me (it wasn't), and then didn't answer any of my questions.
Common sense? He also seemed to forget that there are 9 members on the school board.
You gotta practice what you preach. Otherwise, it's hypocritical lip service.
While we're at it, Dave Stoneburner also had an article posted: http://morrisvillesfuture.blogspot.com/2009/10/board-must-balance-community-needs-and.html
Morrisville Matters offers thoughtful, educated, and involved candidates, past, present, and future.
Jack Buckman's not running this year. Then again, come to think of it, Jack Buckman probably didn't write the Jack Buckman letter. Your point is well taken that Stay on Coarse leaves a lot to be desired.
Morrisville Puzzle: How To Cut School Taxes May 11, 1989|By Kimberly J. McLarin, Inquirer Staff Writer
Mary Jo Grimasuckas is fed up, but then, so is just about every other taxpayer in Morrisville.
Last year the Morrisville school board increased taxes property taxes more than 50 percent. This year the board has proposed increasing the millage rate from 324 mills to 367 mills, a 13 percent increase.
Under the proposed budget, taxes on a house assessed at the district average of $5,000 would increase by $215 from $1,621 to $1,835.
"I don't know how anybody can afford these taxes anymore," Grimasuckas said. "Where is all that money they took from us last year? What did they do with all that money? We're going to have to do something."
If someone in Morrisville is going to have to do something, the question is what. The small district of about 1,100 students has been bypassed by the growth in much of Lower Bucks County. Since 1980, enrollment has shrunk by 25 percent, while the district's tax base has eroded with the loss of several major industries. Property values have stagnated while the tax rate climbed to one of the highest in Bucks County.
"We've gotten to the point in Morrisville where we cannot afford to pay for public education," school board president John Warenda Jr. said.
Warenda said he's not surprised by the taxpayer outcry, but said he's not sure what can be done.
"There's a large outcry every year," he said. "One can hardly blame anybody for being concerned and upset about the possibility of a large tax increase."
Salaries and benefits account for almost 83 percent of the proposed $8.4 million budget, he said. That includes a budgeted 10 percent increase for teachers that has raised the ire of many taxpayers.
But Warenda said that the 10 percent figure used in the budget is an arbitrary number used by administrators because the teacher contract is still being negotiated.
"That's not an actual demand or an actual offer," he said.
Warenda said the opportunities for trimming the budget are limited.
"I hope it will be reduced," he said, "but if it is reduced, it comes out of one of two areas. How much can you cut from building maintainence, books and supplies?"
Warenda said he saw only three solutions to the district's problems: initiate extensive tax reform going beyond what is now being proposed to voters; get more state funding; or merge with the Pennsbury School District.
"I don't see any of them happening quickly," he said. "If somebody else has a better idea, they should step forward."
OK, said John Buckman, member of the school board. Cut spending.
OK, said Marlys Mihok, president of the Morrisville Taxpayers Association.
Cut spending.
"It's tax, tax, tax the people to death here," Buckman said. "The way to correct the problem is to start making cuts. The idea that you can't is ridiculous."
Buckman said as he understood the budget, about 11 mills of the proposed 43-mill increase absolutely must be passed, in part to pay for programs mandated by the state. The rest, he said, is fair game.
"I would love to see us cut that all the way back to the 11," he said. ''Let's go for the works."
Mihok said in the three years since she and her husband moved to Morrisville, their taxes have doubled.
"The people in this district have their backs against the wall," she said.
Warenda, and other school officials, respond that to maintain a quality educational system, you have to pay for it.
And although Buckman and Mihok said they thought the district could cut its spending and still maintain its educational quality, Warenda said not necessarily.
The perception already exists that a Morrisville education is poor, despite officials' attempts to point out the district's high scoring on standardized tests. At a recent board meeting parents complained about the lack of some classes and the quality of others at the high school.
"One group doesn't say they want you to spend more but they want a greater degree of services," Warenda said. "The other group won't say they want you to provide less services, but they want you to spend less money. But you don't do more for less," he said. "That's not part of real life."
Is your point that Buckman and Mihok have had poor earnings potential for twenty five years, or that they have had no money management abilities for 25 years? Or that they have been droning talking heads beating the same very dead horse for 25 years?
And these two are just two of the many. There are legions of old articles citing the same problems, the same group of "leaders," the same empty words and the long history of a failure to correct these problems, instead wallowing in the stagnation of inactivity, fear of change and hiding behind empty words. The other side of this coin is the groups who have tried to bring about change, and the way in which they were quickly demonized and subsequently deposed, re-opening the door for the same group of lack-wits to step back into these roles and ensure 4 more years of a do-nothing leadership.
Tiny Bucks School District Looks For Help In Merger May 20, 1988|By Sara Solovitch, Inquirer Staff Writer
The Morrisville School District, one of the oldest and smallest in the state, is fighting for its life.
Faced with a huge budget deficit and a successful taxpayers' revolt, Morrisville has swallowed its pride and made overtures to merge with the Pennsbury School District - its more prosperous neighbor on the Delaware River in Bucks County.
But Pennsbury has shown little sign of embracing the 1,100 students of Morrisville, and no law can force it to do so.
"Morrisville was given the choice back in the 1960s to merge with us and they chose not to," said Thomas Romett, Pennsbury's assistant superintendent of business and personnel. "They wanted to remain small and independent, and now they're going to pay a very expensive price for that smallness."
The little district has been paying for years. Since 1980, enrollment has shrunk by 25 percent, while the borough's tax base has eroded with the demise of several major industries and the loss of hundreds of jobs. And though its tax rate has climbed to one of the highest in Bucks County, assessed property values have remained virtually stagnant.
"We have six kids in Calculus I, but if you get rid of calculus what does that mean?" McDowelle said. "It means we'll never have a student from Morrisville who will be an engineer or a doctor. To me, it means that you've made a career decision for those kids, and you don't have the right to do that. If you do that, then you've crippled those kids. And at that point, you should merge."
In the early 1960s, when the state consolidated its more than 2,000 school districts into 501, Morrisville chose to remain independent. For the most part, according to teachers and parents, the choice has been a good one.
Like many others, Belledin suspects that the Pennsbury School District looks down on its less-affluent neighbor on the Delaware.
"We have these 'lower-class' kids," said one Morrisville school board member who asked not to be identified. "There's snobbery involved, and there's no other way of saying it."
"We're caught in a very tough little trap," said Jack Buckman, who won election to the Morrisville school board in December as an opponent of the tax.
"The state implies that when you get below 1,100 students, you shouldn't even have a school district," he said. "But the problem is also political. If we merge with Pennsbury, we won't have a lot of say over the kind of school system we want to run."
Collections Looking Back On Volatile Tenure John Warenda Jr. Was President Six Of The Eight Years He Served On The Morrisville School Board. They Weren't Peaceful Years. December 19, 1991|By Michelle Rizzo, Special to The Inquirer
There were hundreds of residents and about a dozen print and television reporters in the crowd, but John Warenda Jr. didn't let that stop him.
A dissenter in the audience had implied that Warenda, president of the Morrisville school board, had something personal to gain by the ratification of a new teachers' contract.
"The only thing I'm getting out of this," snapped Warenda, "is the satisfaction of calling you a jerk."
The incident, which occurred at a meeting in March 1990 at the culmination of a long teachers' strike, was vintage Warenda. In his eight years on the board, which ended Dec. 2, he rarely conducted a business-as-usual meeting or let a careless statement go unchallenged.
"The reactions you saw were genuine," Warenda, 40, said in an interview at his law office last week. "It wasn't just good theater. I was angry at people from time to time. . . . I didn't give up my rights as a citizen just because I got elected to public office.
"If there are people who weren't going to like me, I wasn't going to try and win them over beyond a certain point."
As president for six of his eight years on the board - longer than any predecessor - Warenda oversaw some of the most profound upheavals the history of the district.
A tiny district with only 1,100 students and about 80 teachers, Morrisville grabbed an inordinate share of headlines during Warenda's years on the board. In the high-flying '80s, when other districts were adding or renovating classrooms and stuffing them with computers and other educational aids, Morrisville was cutting back staff and closing school buildings. Some of the most furiously debated board decisions include:
* A 1 percent earned-income tax that was implemented in the spring of 1987 and repealed a year later after sparking outrage among residents. The powerful Morrisville Taxpayers Association accused Warenda of wanting to institute a ''nuisance tax."
* The 1990 teachers' contract, which will have cost the taxpayers an additional $1.7 million by the time it expires in 1993.
* Unsuccessful legal action to force the neighboring larger, richer Pennsbury School District, to merge with - and in effect absorb - Morrisville.
A champion of tax reform, Warenda fervently advocates funding the schools through an earned-income tax rather than property taxes.
"It's more in accordance with people's ability to pay," he said last week. "But the mood of the public and the electorate is against change."
An articulate, sometimes eloquent speaker, Warenda had no fear of publicly dismissing his political enemies as "the lunatic fringe," or "small-caliber fools." It was an attitude he said he reached after trying hard to win them over. "It turned out that if you weren't in agreement with some of these people, then there was no conciliation in their souls."
He worried little about tape recorders, cameras or his own image: Often he would rub his eyes and appear obviously bored or preoccupied. At one meeting he left his chair at the front of the room and sat in the audience, saying he ''always wanted to see what it was like from this perspective." He remained there for the rest of the meeting.
Now with the recession crippling school districts nationwide, Morrisville faces its greatest threat to survival. Administrators predict a potential $2 million shortfall next year - a deficit that Superintendent C. Van Cain says will force draconian cutbacks in personnel, extra curricular activities and supplies.
In what many interpret as an angry backlash against Warenda and his board, Morrisville voters in November placed five new anti-tax members on the board to be headed by new president Jim Murray.
To Warenda, blaming Morrisville's poor fiscal situtation on him and his old board "is the argument of people scurrying about covering their you-know- whats. Frankly, they're busy at work passing the buck. Why can't I blame my problems on what the board did in 1976? Simple, because it isn't their fault. You can't pass the buck backwards . . . The promise of a simple answer is something that can't be realized."
In September 1990, Warenda stepped down as president and served as vice president for the remainder of his term. He decided not to run again and his name was not on the November ballot.
Warenda said his motivation for spending almost 10 years at what he described as "the center of the bull's-eye" was his children: John, 14, Jason, 11 and Kate, 4.
And there was also, he said, a late-'60s conviction that serving a community and teaching its children "is one of the most important things we can do for society." Farmers and educators, he said "top the list of necessary workers."
As for the new board, he said, "Why not let someone else see if they can do any better? Maybe they'll succeed. I doubt it.
"But who knows? Maybe something they'll do will work. And if it does, I'll even help them. I do have a vested personal interest, my children count, my community counts, my business counts, my home counts."
District Eyes Privatizing Precedent Morrisville Prepares To Defend Replacing A Union With Contract Workers. November 28, 1995|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
At a recent meeting, school board member Jim Murray read an article from the Wall Street Journal that explained a state Supreme Court decision in Wilkinsburg, Pa., where the school district has been using a private company to run one of its elementary schools.
Murray, other board members and the board solicitor believe that information from the article will bolster their fight to keep 16 union secretaries and custodial workers off Morrisville's payroll.
"The state Supreme Court is showing its favor to contracting out," Murray said. "It's just for reasons like this that we have continued to appeal" a state agency's ruling to reinstate the workers. Board member Marlys Mihok, who was defeated in the election, agreed.
"This is a very important decision for the district," she said. "It proves the district's position."
In 1993, the Morrisville board fired the workers, all members of the Morrisville Educational Support Personnel Association (MESPA), and replaced them with contract workers. Beforehand, the board had been negotiating with MESPA and had asked for a four-year deal that included a 20 percent rollback in salaries, then a 5 percent raise each year. The board said it had reached an impasse, and MESPA officials said they were locked out.
After the firing, MESPA appealed to the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board, which said the district had not bargained in good faith. The school board appealed that ruling, and a Bucks County judge upheld the decision. Now, the suit is in state appellate court.
In Wilkinsburg, which is on the outskirts of Pittsburgh, the school board decided in January to hire a private company, Alternative Public Schools Inc. of Nashville, to run Turner Elementary School. Twenty teachers of the 138- member staff were replaced in the change and the school now has a longer day and a longer year, said Charlie Steele, the attorney who argued for the district in the case. He estimated that the district saved a third of its annual costs by subcontracting.
Ralf Gilbert, Morrisville school board solicitor, said he planned to cite the Wilkinsburg case in his arguments in state court in the MESPA issue.
"The Wilkinsburg decision has to do with subcontracting teaching services, which is even a further step than subcontracting custodial or secretarial services," Gilbert said. "The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has upheld that under the facts of the case that Wilkinsburg can do that."
(Page 2 of 2) Gilbert said Wilkinsburg bolstered his case because "it shows the appellate courts are tending to decide more toward approving subcontracting as appropriate under certain facts."
MESPA attorney Lynne Wilson, a lawyer for the Pennsylvania State Education Association, disagreed. In her opinion, the state Supreme Court decided the Wilkinsburg case on a procedural matter, not on the merits of privatization - reducing its relevance as a precedent for the Morrisville district.
"When the actual issues of privatization get before the state Supreme Court, then it might have an effect on MESPA," Wilson said. "Even if you assume the worst - let's assume that the state Supreme Court says privatization is legal - that still doesn't mean a district can ignore its bargaining obligation."
Steele, the attorney for the Wilkinsburg district, who has worked with Morrisville on other legal issues, said that since the state Labor Relations Board ruled against Morrisville, "they're dead."
"It's very unusual for the (Labor Relations Board) to be overturned by the court," Steele said.
Steele said he did not think the Wilkinsburg decision would have any impact on MESPA.
"Districts have a long-standing right to contract out services" such as those provided by secretaries and custodians, Steele said. MESPA "alleges that the district didn't do it right. Wilkinsburg is new law that extends that right to teachers and professional staff."
"blaming Morrisville's poor fiscal situtation on him and his old board "is the argument of people scurrying about covering their you-know- whats. Frankly, they're busy at work passing the buck. Why can't I blame my problems on what the board did in 1976? Simple, because it isn't their fault. You can't pass the buck backwards . . . The promise of a simple answer is something that can't be realized."
Wow, what a perfect summation of politics in the ville, and perhaps these are a microcosm of our current national political situation. As much as I may have disliked W as a president, to continue to simply blame all the problems of today on that administration smacks of a desperate attempt by the current leadership to avoid taking responsibility and doing something to effect the change that is needed. Micro-Macro, and it all looks very similar.
I like the Marlys quote. She's as sweet as ever. The full article is at the link http://articles.philly.com/1995-11-09/news/25683033_1_board-members-newcomer-candidates-school-board
Morrisville 'Parent' Team Wins November 09, 1995|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Winning may have been the easy part for the self-described "parent platform" as it snatched three school board seats from incumbents.
Now everyone just has to get along on the board, where the three Democratic newcomers - Ken Rowan, Ken Junkins and Tina Fitzpatrick - will join six incumbents after months of nasty campaigning. Incumbents Marlys Mihok and Marvin Dupree were ousted.
Mihok said that she was disappointed by the results, saying, "The citizens of Morrisville believed the lies of the three new board members." She said that she recognized there would be a problem with overcoming the divisiveness of the campaign and that she doubted newcomers would be able to do that.
"In the future, I hope to see some integrity of the newcomers," she said. ''Integrity is a word they need to seriously investigate and definitely a goal they should strive toward. Then I'll be behind them 100 percent."
District May Drop 25 Electives At High School To Trim Costs March 15, 1992|By Lisa L. Colangelo, SPECIAL TO THE INQUIRER
In an effort to tighten its fiscal belt and reorganize services in its high school, the Morrisville School District is considering a plan to eliminate 25 elective classes.
"We've organized a secondary school program to save money and do what we're doing better," said Superintendent Cornelius Van Cain.
The Morrisville school board got its first look at the proposed program of studies at Wednesday's meeting.
The board is considering several options to ease financial woes in the district. The plans may include closing an elementary school or increasing class size. About 10 staff positions in the high school are expected to be eliminated by next year.
Cain said the program of studies for the high school was usually approved earlier in the school year, but district officials had waited for the recommendations of the reorganization task force before they drafted a plan. Cain said they wanted to make sure the program fit into the future structure of the Morrisville schools.
Several industrial arts classes, such as basic metalworking-handtools, basic woodworking-machines, creative drafting and photography, will be eliminated. Driver education, instrumental music and band will not be offered during school hours.
Cain said band practice would be continued as an after-school activity. He noted that industrial arts as a whole would not be discontinued, only several of its electives.
The only core academic classes that will be eliminated are Algebra I-A and Algebra I-B, both remedial courses. Those courses were designed for students who had difficulty with the regular algebra program.
"We had several different levels of a beginning math class," Cain told the board. "We don't have the staff to do it. There's a limit to what we can offer."
Cain said the high school would also take an interdisciplinary approach to teaching English, social studies, math and science. For example, students who are learning about the Civil War in their social studies class may read related books, such as The Red Badge of Courage, in their English classes.
As part of a decision made four years ago, the school has phased out German classes from its curriculum. French and Spanish will be the only foreign languages offered to high school students.
Summer school will also be required under the new program. Students who fail a required course during the school year will be mandated to attend summer school, and will not be allowed to make up the class during the regular school year.
Cain said he hoped the board would approve the program of studies at its regular meeting March 25.
Morrisville Picks Superintendent, Abandons Plan To Shut A School May 14, 1989|By Kimberly J. McLarin, Inquirer Staff Writer
It took only two weeks for the Morrisville School District to find a successor for Superintendent James McDowelle. Now it must find a replacement for the replacement.
The school board voted unanimously Wednesday to appoint Assistant Superintendent C. Van Cain to the district's top administrative post. Board president John Warenda Jr. said Cain was one of two candidates considered for the job. The other was Assistant Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg .
"This is tough duty," Warenda said of the Morrisville district, which is in the middle of a financial crisis and looking at a possible merger. "It's not so much leaving Morrisville, as it is being attracted to a better gig," he said, referring to the resignations of McDowelle and Kimmelman.
The board tabled action on board member John Buckman's proposal to slash the proposed $8.4 million budget by 10 percent, to reduce a proposed 43-mill tax hike.
"Be serious," board member Roy Snare said in response to Buckman's proposal. "You want to provide an education here or don't you?"
Googler said... District May Drop 25 Electives At High School To Trim Costs
Thank you! These are great articles. Isn't it amazing how following the cuts, the inferior level of education provided becomes the new normal and we chip away more and more.
"Be serious. You want to provide an education here or don't you?"
"For example, students who are learning about the Civil War in their social studies class may read related books, such as The Red Badge of Courage, in their English classes."
Read "Ball Four" by Jim Bouton and you can cover English and baseball at the same time.
The Tax That Will Not Die Morrisville Gets 2-year-old Bills June 21, 1990|By Michelle Rizzo, Special to The Inquirer
When Marlys Mihok of Morrisville checked her mail 10 days ago, she found an ominous letter. So did a lot of other borough residents.
It was a bill demanding payment and late charges for an income tax that was enacted briefly and abolished two years ago. The letter warned Mihok that if she did not respond within 10 days she would have to pay a $500 fine - or face jail.
The letters came from the Central Tax Bureau, or CENTAX, a private tax- collection agency in Castle Shannon near Pittsburgh.
Rather than raise the real estate tax for the 1987-1988 school year, the Morrisville school board enacted a 1 percent income tax. CENTAX was hired to collect the tax. The tax raised a furor and was not continued into the next year.
Mihok made initial quarterly payments, she said, but held back from paying the last because her husband's Social Security number was incorrect on the bill.
"I certainly intended to pay it," said Mihok, who was the president last year of the Morrisville Taxpayer Association, "but I just wanted to make sure it would be credited to the proper account."
Since receiving the bill in April 1988, Mihok said, she had tried in vain to have CENTAX fix the mistake, once even writing the company in calligraphy.
"I feel a little put out, especially when I put in time to write a letter and make phone calls," she said. "My time is gold. . . . On top of that, they don't even have a toll-free number."
Now, she said, CENTAX is asking for several months' worth of late charges at a rate of 1 percent of the bill's total.
CENTAX vice president Robert Villella said there was no notice between this month's letters and the April 1988 billing because the firm had to await the Commonwealth Personal Income Tax Register, a list of taxpayers compiled by the state Department of Community Affairs.
"Many people are under the assumption that because the tax was repealed that they don't have to pay it, but they are obligated to meet that debt," he said.
Though Villella said the list was put out every 18 months, Herb Zaring of Community Affairs said Wednesday it was published yearly. The last one was issued last Junem and another will come out in about two weeks.
The school board did not anticipate how furious residents would be with the tax, board President John J. Warenda Jr. said Monday.
After the first billing in April 1987, about 1,000 residents attended a board meeting to protest the tax. Some even ripped the bill up in front of the nine board members.
Collecting the tax, which school officials estimated would raise $800,000, was made even more difficult by a series of mistakes.
With much of the expected revenue still uncollected, the board in January asked its solicitor, John Donohue, to initiate legal action against the firm for not having completed the job. The suit, Donohue said Monday, is being held in abeyance now that the company is pursuing the old taxes.
Some residents speculated that the suit had triggered CENTAX's barrage of delinquency notices.
Board member Paul Bunting received one, though he did not live in the borough when the tax was in force. He said he had sent the form back, figuring that would satisfy the demand to "respond within 10 days."
Bob Harrison said he had never heard of CENTAX until he received a delinquent notice, without ever having received a bill. "There's no explanation as to why I never received a bill in the first place," he said. ''It just says you owe the money, here's how much you owe, pay the bill or you're in trouble."
Charlie Maira said he had been asked to pay more than $300. He asked CENTAX whether he could pay in two or three installments and was told that he had to submit the entire fee or a lien would be put on his house. "Even the IRS will accept payments - why in the world won't CENTAX?" he asked.
If mistakes were made, Villella said, those involved should call the firm. ''Every effort would be made to resolve their problem," he said. "If they want to pay off $500 in $5-a-month installments, then obviously we're not going to go along with that."
The school board has asked residents who are having problems with their CENTAX bill to call the business office at 736-2681.
Morrisville School Race Features 5 Challengers April 23, 1995|By Andrew Metz, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Call it the parent platform.
Five parents, all political newcomers and all fiercely committed to education, are challenging five incumbent school board members in the primary elections next month.
The challengers - Mary Singleton, Kenneth Rowan, Tina Fitzpatrick, Kenneth Junkins and Ronald Shomo - although not formally campaigning together, say the current nine-member board is out of touch with students and not pushing hard enough for educational enhancement. They question several of the board's recent decisions, particularly the move in November to remove Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye from a high school English class. "It's time for parents to be a part of the decision process," said Singleton, 40, who has four children, including a 19-year-old daughter who was a single mother when she dropped out of the Morrisville Middle-Senior High School two years ago. Singleton said she hoped to bring a heightened awareness of minority issues to the board if elected.
"The school board that is in place right now is very much out of touch with what is going on," said Shomo, 35, a chemist, who said he disagreed with pulling Morrison's book. "They are burying their heads in the sand if they think that stuff is going to go away."
The incumbent board members are reluctant to talk about the book decision, which will be revisited on Wednesday night, but many still support the move and say its relevance has been exaggerated. They say their real work has just begun.
"It is an absurd issue that has nothing to do with the way we run the school district," said incumbent James Murray. Murray, 69, is a Morrisville High School graduate and former school football star. "What we have already done is put the district on a sound financial basis," he said. "We are now trying to focus on improving education."
Historically, the school board, which governs the 1,100-student district, has been preoccupied with keeping fiscal crisis at bay. A stagnant tax base has contributed to tax increases, cutbacks and a decrepit physical plant. Even as the district has fought recently to reduce taxes and upgrade its educational program - textbooks have been updated, computers purchased - some areas have suffered. Last year, an elementary school was closed, and theater funds were slashed.
(Page 2 of 2) "This term that we are completing was tough, we had to make a lot of hard decisions," said Board President Edward Nelson, 67, a vocal advocate for reducing taxes. He sat on the board in the 1970s and is running for reelection. "We've made the district financially stable; now we'd like to see the fruits of our labor. Now we can look at the educational program."
Besides Nelson and Murray, board members Randall Kenner, Marvin Dupree and Marlys Mihok are running for reelection in the May 16 primary. In Morrisville, one of the county's smallest districts, candidates cross-file as both Republicans and Democrats.
Although all the candidates say education is a top priority, the challengers contend they are better equipped to push this agenda - they all have children in the Morrisville schools. "The current board is primarily concerned with just saving money," said Junkins, 38, who has four school-age children and an infant. "I think the students are suffering because of it. I want to be an advocate of the students."
Morrisville Board Oks Closing Elementary School Despite Criticism The Closing Trimmed Nearly $300,000 From The 1994-95 Budget. Some Board Members And Many Parents Opposed The Decision. Some Are Not Ready To Give Up. June 23, 1994|By Christine Schiavo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
School board president Edward Nelson knew that closing Manor Park Elementary School would save the district desperately needed dollars.
He voted against the closing anyway.
"Future cost savings must come from new sources of income, not by cutting any more programs," Nelson said before the June 16 vote.
Parents of Manor Park children stood and applauded Nelson for his stand.
But only two of his fellow board members agreed.
Viewing the closure as a necessary business decision, board member Raymond Dominski said, "To help us survive, we, too, may have to shut down a plant and stabilize operations."
Dominski voted for closure with Marvin Dupree Jr., Edward Evans, Paul Bunting, James Murray and Stephen Worob.
"None of us, even those voting to close Manor Park and reorganize the district, really wants to close any school," Murray said.
But he said the closure and the $295,000 savings that go with it "would favorably affect future school budgets."
To Manor Park parents, the saving isn't worth the price.
Their children now will walk from their southeastern Morrisville neighborhood, across town and busy streets, to M.R. Reiter Elementary School.
Eileen Dreisbach, parent of a Manor Park third grader, led the parents' fight to keep the school open.
Ten years ago, when her two sons were at Manor Park, Dreisbach and other parents successfully defeated a campaign to close the school.
Even as Manor Park's last day of classes looms - Monday - Dreisbach is not ready to give up the fight.
"All we can do is plead with (the board) to reverse the decision," she said.
Dreisbach agrees with Nelson that closing the school will not solve the long-term problem, just as closing the Capitol View Elementary School in 1981 did not end the district's budget woes. She favors pursuing a merger with the Pennsbury School District as a more permanent solution.
"We would keep our neighborhood schools open then," Dreisbach said.
Morrisville has initiated merger discussions with Pennsbury in the past.
The Pennsbury school board has never been receptive to the idea.
Morrisville board member Frank McCarthy, who voted to keep Manor Park open, said Morrisville cannot stake the district's viability on a possible merger.
"We can't dream that the cavalry's coming, that Pennsbury will welcome us with open arms," he said.
Nelson noted that the Manor Park neighborhood is near the borough's industrial zone, the area most likely to attract any new or expanding business development.
"If this is where the future (tax) ratables would be, I think we should let Manor Park have their school," he said.
With no big business prospects expected any time soon to beef up the borough's tax base, the school board opted for the obvious solution - budget cuts.
To keep school taxes from rising, the board surpassed its own expectations by cutting enough out of the 1994-95 budget to reduce taxes by 1 mill.
The board passed a $9.7 million budget. That will mean a property tax bill of $1,782, a savings of $4 over 1993-94, for homeowners whose homes are assessed at $4,000, the township average.
The board boosted revenues by shifting nearly $84,000 from the fund balance to the general fund.
It also agreed to sell the old Capitol View Elementary School for $20,000 to John and Deborah Haveson, who plan to run a day-care center there.
On a completely unrelated note: Sherwood Schwartz, who created “Gilligan’s Island” and “The Brady Bunch,” two of the most affectionately ridiculed and enduring television sitcoms of the 1960s and ’70s, died on Tuesday in Los Angeles. He was 94.
Another Morrisville School Board Member Announces Resignation He Is The Third To Step Down In Three Months. The Changes Have Some Parents Worried. September 06, 1992|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
It's not even an election year, but the Morrisville Board of Education will have at least three new members before 1992 ends.
Alfred A. Radosti resigned in July, Wayne Almond resigned late last month, and Thomas Coolbaugh announced he would resign this month.
The board went through three votes before it reached a majority and replaced Radosti with Stephen Worob. Radosti left the board for personal reasons and because of time conflicts with his job as a Lower Makefield police officer.
Almond, who has served on the board for almost nine years and was elected for two consecutive terms, stepped down for personal and health reasons.
"My family, my friends and my physician have all told me to reduce the stress in my life," Almond said. "It's time to take a little break."
Coolbaugh is moving out of Morrisville because of a transfer in his position at Mobil Oil Co.
The changes have some parents worried. Almond and Coolbaugh frequently disagreed with the board majority and sided with parents on several educational and financial issues.
The financially conservative majority managed to hold the line on taxes with the 1992-93 school budget. But the small school district was hit with personnel cuts, including a loss of 18 teaching positions.
Board members contend the program that served the 1,100-student district was not efficient. But some parents worry about the quality of the downsized educational system.
Almond, who teaches at Abraham Lincoln High School in Northeast Philadelphia, urged parents to keep attending meetings and stay involved.
In his resignation letter, Almond asked the board to replace him with someone who shared his ideology. He said that was the criteria the board majority used when it replaced Radosti with Worob.
"I feel they should honor his request," said parent Suzanna Show. "It's very important that they (Almond and Coolbaugh) are replaced with people who have children in this district."
Potential candidates for the seat had until Friday to submit their resumes to the district. The board is expected to fill the seat this month.
"We will look at the applications and hold interviews to decide who is the best person for the job," said Board President James Murray.
The terms of all three members expire in 1993. Their appointed replacements will have to participate in next spring's primary if they want to stay on the board.
"Historically, the school board, which governs the 1,100-student district, has been preoccupied with keeping fiscal crisis at bay. A stagnant tax base has contributed to tax increases, cutbacks and a decrepit physical plant."
S.O.C. creeps dithered while Rome burned. M.R. Reiter blew up and the other buildings rotted in the 1980s and 90s while S.O.C. style School Boards jerked around banning books, illegally firing and locking out MESPA workers, and chipping away at curriculum and activities.
Just wondering, do you think Ferrara, D'Angelo, & other Administrators know any of this history about the people who hired them? Do you think they would behave differently if they lived here in Morrisville and weren't on the payroll?
Morrisville School Board Seeks Residents' Input A Questionnaire Will Poll Taxpayers On School Programs They Would Like Continued Or Cut. November 11, 1993|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
The school board, tired of being hammered by critics, is reaching out to the public to help plan the 1994-95 school budget.
A questionnaire asking taxpayers what types of programs they would like to see continued or cut in the Morrisville schools has been sent out by the district.
It may be a sign of tough times ahead.
Some of the options include reducing or eliminating extracurricular activities and sports, closing schools and eliminating kindergarten.
When the board has cut staff and activities in the past, it has been criticized by angry parents, students and teachers.
"I felt we weren't really getting a broad community response," said board President James Murray.
"There is a small, organized opposition to the board who come to the meetings. But when I meet people on the street, they tell me we are doing a great job."
Murray and the majority of the board were elected in 1991 on an anti-tax platform. The board managed to hold the line on taxes in 1992, but had to raise them by 55.45 mills this year.
That increase translated into $221.80 in additional taxes for a property owner with an average borough assessment of $4,000.
The financially strapped district serves 1,100 students. Board members have blamed their predicament on high teacher salaries, state mandates and a shrinking borough tax base.
Since 1992, the board has made several cuts, including teachers and other staff. Most recently, the district replaced some secretaries and custodians with independent contractors.
"Everything that can be cut has already been cut," said Maureen McCreadie, who has two sons in the district.
"There are so few resources in Morrisville, both economic and human, it seems particularly important now to work hard together and find ways to generate revenues."
McCreadie said the district should aggressively pursue grants, state aid and other financial sources. She pointed out that many of the activity reductions only save a small amount.
For example, the board recently cut the drama program - which included the annual high school play - for a savings of $825.
Another question on the survey asked taxpayers how they feel about a 1 percent earned-income tax and leaves room for other suggestions. But Murray said the options were based on suggestions made by residents to school board members.
He said the board will compile the answers and consider the suggestions when it reviews the budget in the spring.
The surveys, which were mailed out with stamped, self-addressed envelopes, are due back by Monday.
The board a year ago agreed to buy equipment for a new computer center, and Murray said it will have to look this year at including money in the budget for maintenance work that has been postponed for years.
Cuts may have to be made to afford that expense.
"We cannot simply keep raising taxes ad infinitum," he said.
Judge To Break Deadlock Over Seat The Morrisville School Board Split On Two Candidates To Fill A Vacancy. A Ruling Is Expected Friday. March 05, 1996|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Members of the Morrisville school board hoped to resolve at least some of their differences by appearing before a Bucks County Court judge yesterday.
When board member Jim Murray resigned several months ago, two candidates emerged as possible replacements, but the board split, 4-4, on whether Ron Schomo or former member Marvin Dupree should take the seat. Now, Judge Cynthia Weaver will choose.
In a two-hour session, Weaver heard arguments for both candidates. She said she expected to reach a decision by Friday. Under state law, if a school board or municipal government cannot decide on a board member, it can submit the matter to the courts.
``I would say this is a very difficult decision for me,'' Weaver said. ``I'd like to appoint both of you to the school board. . . . I hope that no matter what the result, both of you will continue your involvement with the school and the community because you both have much to give.''
Dupree said he was the best candidate because of his board experience and his financial background as a state auditor. Dupree was a board member from 1992 to 1995 but lost in November by 25 votes.
``My goals for the school district have been the same for three years,'' Dupree said. ``I believe there is an attitude toward Morrisville as a second-rate school district and that the school taxes are too high.''
Schomo said he was the better choice, citing his technical background in chemistry and financial skills learned from managing the $250,000 budget at the lab he works for in Princeton, N.J. He also pointed to his grant-writing efforts and work with the Morrisville Brain Trust, which aims to serve as a bridge between the business community and the schools. He lost in the May primary by six votes.
``We need to look at alternative ways to run the school district,'' Schomo said. ``I've gotten my company to donate about 12 printers to the school that otherwise would have wound up in the Dumpster.''
Acting as Dupree's attorney, his wife, Anita, brought four witnesses to testify in his behalf.
Murray, whose seat the two are vying for, said that Dupree had financial acumen and was always ``the point man on the numbers.''
Marlys Mihok, another former board member who was defeated in November, said Dupree was ``very objective, always fair, and willing to listen to other people's points of view.''
Schomo and his attorney, David Sander, also brought four witnesses.
Board member Tina Fitzpatrick said Schomo was ``very focused . . . he'll look at something, and he's dogged about figuring it out.''
Constance Beadle, a longtime friend and neighbor, said Schomo's best attribute was ``clearly intelligence. He has a high level of education, and he's very experienced with money.''
Besides Fitzpatrick, Schomo is backed by board members Paul Nestor, Ken Rowan and Ken Junkins. Dupree is backed by Frank McCarthy, Paul Bunting, Steve Worob and Ed Nelson.
Proposal To Close School Hits Opposition Morrisville Wants To Cut Its Tax Rate. Closing Manor Park Elementary Would Trim 9 Mills. March 20, 1994|By Christine Schiavo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
The school board didn't expect applause when it announced the possible closing of a neighborhood elementary school.
And they certainly didn't get it.
A packed and opposing house of nearly 200 greeted the board Wednesday at a public hearing to discuss the possible closing of Manor Park Elementary School.
Despite the numbers, only six people testified. All six were opposed to the plan, and all left the microphone amid cheers from the audience.
At issue: the proposed closing of Manor Park Elementary School on the southeast side of Morrisville. The closing would slash 9 mills, or $135,000,
from the annual budget. The district has the highest tax millage rate in the county.
"We'll do everything we can to keep the doors open," said Edward Nelson, school board president. But, he added, "We have to keep taxes down."
Eileen Driesback presented to the board a petition signed by 409 people opposed to the closing. The board will vote on the 1994-95 operating budget in June.
"I'd rather pay higher taxes," said Patricia Manning, parent of a Manor Park student. "Raise them. You've got them sky-high already."
When the last budget was approved in June, Morrisville residents were socked with a 55.45 mill increase for the district. The 446.40 millage rate generated $6.6 million for the district's current budget, which represents nearly 70 percent of the total $9.6 million district budget. The situation has increased school tax bills to more than $2,000 for taxpayers owning homes assessed at the borough average of $4,500.
Nelson said the district's state subsidy has remained about $2 million for the last 20 years. Although that subsidy financed 50 percent of the district's budget in the 1970s, it finances only 20 percent now.
Nelson added that while Morrisville's population base has remained steady at about 10,000 people, its industrial base has eroded over the last 10 years. That has shifted the brunt of the tax burden to residential property owners.
Built in the mid-1970s to replace a school that burned down, Manor Park is the newest of Morrisville's three elementary schools. It has 168 students in grades kindergarten to six. Although the enrollment is similar to that of Grandview and M.R. Reiter Elementary Schools, Manor Park doesn't have the capacity to handle more students. But M.R. Reiter, which is on the other side of town, has plenty of space.
(Page 2 of 2) "We don't want to ever be in a position where we couldn't grow at a school," said Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg. "Manor Park is a lovely school. The school board would not be looking at closing it for anything but
financial reasons."
What makes the possibility so distressing for Manor Park parents is the walk their children would have to make to M.R. Reiter. Because the district's 1,100 students live within walking distance of their schools, only special- education students are transported by bus.
Children walking from their Manor Park neighborhood to M.R. Reiter would have to cross the borough's three busiest streets - Route 1, Bridge Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. One parent complained that her daughter would have to pass a go-go bar along the way.
Nelson noted that Morrisville has twice the room it needs to educate students in its four schools. He said Morrisville has the space that neighboring Pennsbury needs. But whether a merger is in the future remains uncertain.
"I think we're continually open for negotiations with Pennsbury," Nelson said. "Whether a merger will ever happen, I don't know."
Morrisville Challengers' Triumph Has 'Energized' School Campaign May 21, 1995|By Andrew Metz, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
James A. Murray was sour.
"I am very dissatisfied with the vote," the 69-year-old school board vice president said after Tuesday's primary election for five open seats on the board. "The people who thought we were doing a good job apparently sat home."
Murray and three incumbent board members were edged off the coveted Democratic ticket Tuesday by four parents turned school activists.
Five incumbent Democrats squared off against five feisty Democratic challengers in the primary. All the candidates cross-filed. With the exception of incumbent Randall Kenner, who came in fourth on the Democratic side, the challengers carried the day.
Tina Fitzpatrick, 36; Mary Singleton, 40; Kenneth G. Rowan, 37; and Kenneth D. Junkins, 38, won Democratic nominations. Board president Edward F. Nelson, 67, was the top Republican vote-getter, trailed by incumbents Marlys Mihok, 42; Marvin Dupree Jr., 40; and Murray.
One challenger, Tina Fitzpatrick, the Democratic front-runner, is assured a place on the nine-member board - she took nominations on both the Democratic and Republican sides.
"I'm on the board. It's very exciting," the mother of three said after the primary. Throughout the campaign, Fitzpatrick and the other challengers pitted themselves as young parents deeply committed to education. They questioned the current board's recent decisions, particularly its move to pull Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye from the high school curriculum, and they cast the board as out of touch with students.
"It is a real shot in the arm for parents," said Fitzpatrick, 37. "This is parents uniting, the community uniting for our future."
The Morrisville school board has grappled with tough financial issues in the last several years. A stagnant tax base due to lost industry has led to high taxes, an ailing physical plant, cutbacks and closures. This year, the board is looking at its first major construction project in more than a decade - a computer and library center for the M.R. Reiter Elementary School - and it is proposing a tax cut.
Board members say the work on enhancing education has just begun.
"There is more work that needs to be done . . . quality of education is first and foremost," said Dupree, 40. He said that low voter turnout had hurt the incumbents, who lost by a slim margin. But, he said, he believed more voters would come out in support of the board, now on the Republican ticket, in the November general election.
The incumbents' name recognition and serious campaigning in the coming months may help them retain their seats in November. But Tuesday's election has set the stage for an Election Day fight.
"We have months to actively campaign," Fitzpatrick said. "This community is energized."
Unseated School Board Member Appointed In Morrisville The Court's Naming Of Marvin A. Dupree To The Ninth Post Keeps Fiscal Conservatives In Power. March 11, 1996|By Russell Gold, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
The court appointment of a ninth member to the Morrisville school board has quieted the surging strength of a coalition of political novices who ran on a ``parents' platform'' in November and unseated three incumbents.
Marvin A. Dupree Jr., a former board member and one of the unseated incumbents, was appointed to the board Friday by Bucks County Court of Common Pleas Judge Cynthia Weaver.
Dupree's appointment keeps five votes in the hands of a fiscally cautious majority that intends to control taxes, which at 410 mills are the highest of any school district in the county.
Ron Schomo, the candidate of the parents' platform, had argued that innovative alliances with businesses and the aggressive pursuit of grants could help the school district improve without overtaxing the residents. He could not be reached for comment after the court decision.
The school board had asked the court to decide between Schomo and Dupree after deadlocking twice and failing to reach a compromise. The opening was created in December when James Murray resigned just weeks after winning a tough reelection campaign. Murray had been aligned with the fiscally cautious incumbents. Dupree will serve through December 1997, according to the court order.
``We are continuing to challenge and improve the educational program in Morrisville School District and at the same time make it an education that is affordable to the community at large,'' Dupree said Friday.
Board member Paul Bunting cheered Dupree's appointment, noting his experience as an auditor.
The three board members who were elected on the parents' platform and their allies, Bunting said, ``don't have regard for cost. They seem to have an attitude of spare no expense, education at whatever cost.''
Tina Fitzpatrick, a novice board member who ran on the parents' platform and received the most votes in November, said Schomo had proved himself to be an enterprising and committed member of the community.
``Ron really is someone who thinks out of the box,'' Fitzpatrick said. ``A lot of people look at computers that cost $2,000 a piece and say we can't afford them. Ron looks at the computers and says let's find a way to get them. Let's find a grant.''
Dupree said that he was impressed with Schomo's commitment to education in Morrisville, and that he hoped Schomo would continue his involvement.
District Floats 58-mill Tax Increase The Morrisville School Board Anticipates More Spending On Staff And Classroom Materials. April 19, 1996|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Taxpayers in this tiny school district were overjoyed to see a whopping tax cut last year that hacked more than $140 off the average bill.
It appears that the party could be over.
Wednesday night, the school board unanimously approved a preliminary $11 million 1996-97 budget that contains a whopping 58-mill tax increase - a figure that would add more than $230 to the average tax bill, for a total of $1,872. That figure may not last long if board members such as Marvin Dupree have their way.
Ads by Google Compare Annuity RatesCustom Online Report For Your State See All Annuity Rates and Compare. Annuity.AdvisorWorld.comMcCann School of BusinessWide Array of Programs To Help You Find & Start A Career. Enroll Now! McCann.edu/Mccann+School ``My goal is no increase,'' said Dupree, who peppered much of the three-hour meeting with pointed questions to administration officials. ``I intend to try to get the millage increase down to zero. With the highest millage in the county, we can't afford not to.''
Board members and district officials stressed that the numbers were preliminary - there will be four more budget meetings to hammer out details, and the final budget plan does not need to be passed until the end of June. The next budget meeting will be at 7 p.m. May 1.
The preliminary budget includes increased spending for books and materials, boosts to technology programs, and more part-time teachers and aides.
No money is allocated for construction or renovations.
District Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg said the biggest reasons for the millage increase were teachers' salary increases written into the final year of their contract, accounting for an additional 16 mills. Also, costs for special-education students have increased along with their enrollment, accounting for an additional 23 mills, or about $330,000, she said.
The budget also takes into consideration a decline in assessed values, which adds about 5 mills, plus an additional 4 mills needed for construction of a comprehensive vocational-technical center, Fineburg said.
The 1996-97 budget plan uses about $775,000 of the district's fund balance, leaving about $500,000 in the reserve, Fineburg said. Though some board members hinted at using more of that reserve, Fineburg said it would not be fiscally sound. Last year's budget used no money from the fund balance.
As with most school budgets, the majority of the cost is rooted in instructional costs, including teacher salaries and benefits. In Morrisville's case, this accounts for about 61 percent, or $6.9 million. The bulk of revenue comes from the local tax base - about 66 percent. Last year, the district spent about $6.3 million on instruction.
The budget battle may be particularly bloody in Morrisville this year. The board is split into two factions, one with five members who form a taxpayer-rights, conservative side and the other with four members who identify themselves as a ``parent platform'' and are generally thought to be more liberal.
Morrisville Ousts Chief Of Schools Elizabeth Fineburg Has Served The School District For 33 Years. September 26, 1997|By Chris Seper, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Elizabeth Fineburg's 33-year career in the Morrisville School District ends in June. Board members voted, 7-2, Wednesday night not to renew her contract. The majority said it was time for a change - to end a relationship between a board and superintendent in which there was no trust and one side barely communicated with the other. Fineburg and her supporters, however, said her demise completed a power play by glory-hungry, meddling board members. ``Day-to-day petty issues driven by individual board members' agendas are forced on the administrative cabinet, encouraging some quality administrators to leave the district,'' Fineburg said in a prepared statement Wednesday night. Board members Marvin Dupree and Tina Fitzpatrick voted to keep Fineburg, and Paul Bunting, Ken Junkins, Frank McCarthy, Ed Nelson, Paul Nestor, Ron Schomo and Steve Worob voted not to renew her contract. Th board also voted to advertise for a new superintendent. Fineburg had two statements ready Wednesday night: an acceptance speech and another critical of the board. She said she was surprised by the vote but declined to say why. School officials had said for weeks her contract was in jeopardy. ``I don't care what school district, school board or superintendent we're talking about, you need to have an element of trust between the board and superintendent,'' Bunting said. Board member Nestor said it was ``time for change.'' He wanted to move the district in a new direction, but Fineburg wasn't ``leading us in new ways.'' Junkins said communication with the board and superintendent had broken down and reached a point where they were beyond repair. Fineburg agreed communication had broken down, but she laid the problem at the board's feet. Information from her office to board members has increased ``400 percent over the last two year,'' she said. Dupree claimed every board member except Worob who voted against keeping Fineburg did so for personal reasons. Nestor admits he blames Fineburg for his wife being released from the district in 1995, but says his problems with Fineburg are based on other issues. She was an elementary school aide and no reason was publicly given for her dismissal. Schomo, Nelson and Junkins had also been singled out by former school officials as enemies of Fineburg. Dupree added McCarthy and Bunting to that list yesterday. (Page 2 of 2) Dupree said the new majority's policies, including a new teacher contract and the releasing of Fineburg, will send taxes skyrocketing. Fineburg will be the fourth administrator to leave the district in a year. A new one will be hired for much more than Fineburg's $95,000 salary, he said. Bunting said Wednesday's meeting was the ``saddest'' he ever sat in on. He said he liked Fineburg, but that he had to put that aside after weighing the ``pluses and minuses.'' The relationship between Fineburg and some board members was ``contentious'' but not unprofessional, Bunting said. Fineburg, a Morrisville native, joined the district in 1965 as an elementary teacher and later became an assistant principal, head of pupil services, and assistant superintendent before taking the top job.
As an educator, she created the district's first physical education program and was the cofounder of the Morrisville Brain Trust, an organization that fueled academic programs and raised money through donations and grants. SAT scores are at a 10-year high, and she says her technology program is better than any other district's in the county. Fineburg needs one more year of work after June to retire without a financial penalty. She said she did not know whether she would seek a new position. She also could reapply for her current job. She said she had not decided whether she would.
Superintendent Threatens To File Suit The Morrisville School District Relieved Her Of Her Duties Monday Night. Her Contract Expires In June. January 07, 1998|By Heather Moore, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Making allegations of sexual discrimination, Sunshine Law violations and denial of due process, outgoing Morrisville School District Superintendent Elizabeth ``Betsy'' Fineburg threatened yesterday to sue the district and school board.
Her threats came a day after the school board unanimously voted at a special meeting Monday night to excuse Fineburg, a 34-year veteran with the Bucks County school district, from her responsibilities. She will continue to be paid until June 30, when her contract expires.
Fineburg was released from the district before her contract expired, school board President Paul Nestor said, because there was a ``marked decrease in the superintendent's response to what the board needed'' since she was told last fall that her contract would not be renewed.
``There were negative memos, threats, insinuations,'' Nestor said. ``The relationship became, at that point, unmaintainable.''
Said school board Vice President Ken Junkins: ``It's kind of like a divorce: When there are irreconcilable differences, you need to take actions to separate the parties.''
Fineburg was notified of the board's decision to relieve her of her district duties Saturday morning when a typed letter signed by Nestor was hand-delivered to her house. That letter, Fineburg said in an interview yesterday, denied her due process under the law and is a breach of the Sunshine Law, which requires government actions to take place in public meetings.
But school board members said only discussion to relieve Fineburg took place during executive sessions. The public vote, they said, happened Monday night, and the letter to Fineburg was a courtesy.
When Fineburg arrived at work Monday morning, she said, Nestor, Junkins and school board member Ron Schomo were waiting for her with armed constables.
Fineburg, however, refused to leave. She called 911, she said, because she did not think it was appropriate to be alone with the school board members. She spent the rest of Monday working and called in sick yesterday.
``This has really taken a toll on me, health-wise, this constant harassment,'' Fineburg said.
She has asked the Pennsylvania Department of Education to look into the matter, she said, and plans to file a sexual discrimination complaint with the state Human Relations Commission.
``There have been specific comments directed to me from board member(s) because of my sex,'' Fineburg said in a written statement.
School board members also have ``driven every female administrator out of this district,'' she said, and have compensated male administrators better than their female counterparts.
The district's new elementary school principal is being paid $86,000 a year, Fineburg said, although his female predecessor was paid $78,000. Likewise, the new middle-senior high school principal is being paid an annual salary of $88,000, whereas the former female principal was paid $79,000, she said.
But Nestor called the discrimination claims ``nonsense'' and said the district had always hired the most qualified person regardless of sex. The district's new principals are paid more, he said, because they had more educational experience than their predecessors.
Morrisville Parents Are Concerned After School Closing The Board Agreed To More Crossing Guards. Added Supervision Was Sought For The Consolidated School. October 02, 1994|By Molly Peterson, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Eileen Dreisbach's note to the M.R. Reiter Elementary School is "in big red letters." Its message: Don't ever let her daughter leave the school without her.
Dreisbach and her neighbor Anna Emery walk to the school with their daughters, ages 9 and 10, from their Manor Park homes every morning, and back again in the afternoon. They cross several dangerous intersections during the 25-minute, mile-long walk, including two Route 1 exit ramps.
The walk was among many issues raised by Manor Park residents at Wednesday's school board meeting, now that Manor Park Elementary has closed and its students have been transferred to M.R. Reiter. A $700,000 capital reserve fund, established last month, caused residents to question the legitimacy of closing the school in the first place. There are also concerns about supervision, now that the student body has nearly doubled.
The board took immediate steps to solve one of the problems - moving the starting times of three crossing guards from 8 a.m. to 7:45 a.m.
Two of the guards are stationed at the exit ramps, and the third is at the corner of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania Avenues.
Board President Edward Nelson said he would also talk to Police Chief Victor Cicero about hiring more crossing guards, at the school district's expense, for the route from Manor Park to M.R. Reiter.
Dreisbach and Emery were elated by the board's action, but they still have other concerns. Unlike Manor Park, for example, M.R. Reiter is not air- conditioned.
Dreisbach also worries that the increase in the number of students has led to inadequate supervision, especially on the playground. Each school had about 170 students last year; enrollment at M.R. Reiter is now 327.
"There's a little more heavy-duty horseplay," she said after the meeting. ''My daughter's coming home with more black-and-blue marks than she used to."
District Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg said Thursday that she has not been notified of any problems with supervision, but added, "we can certainly look into it."
Several residents also told the board they were angry that after Manor Park
closed, a new, $700,000 capital reserve fund was approved at the Aug. 24 board meeting. The fund will finance long-needed roof repairs at area schools. "You had plenty of money," Emery said. "You could have kept our school open."
But Fineburg said Thursday that the capital reserve fund was not an issue in the decision to close Manor Park. The primary reason for the closing, she said, was consolidation. It is expected to save about $295,000 in annual costs, and M.R. Reiter is large enough to accommodate all its present students and still allow for growth. "We were looking to the future," she said.
Morrisville May Face Tax Increase The District Estimates Its Budget Will Need To Grow By About $500,000 For The Next School Year. May 01, 1998|By Lewis Kamb, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
The school district's new budget is beginning to take form, but taxpayers may not like what they see.
Preliminary estimates place the 1998-99 school year operating budget at just more than $11 million - about $500,000 more than the current year's allotment.
That means Morrisville residents - who already pay the highest millage rate in the county - likely will face a slight tax increase, school officials said at a budget work session on Wednesday.
Salary increases, new hires and rises in general operating costs account for most of the half-million dollar hike from last year, they said.
The district also may need to find an additional $670,000 to pay for proposed capital-improvement projects that will not be covered under the forthcoming budget.
``These are projects that we think are important, but we just couldn't fit into the budget,'' said interim Superintendent John Gould.
The list includes basic maintenance improvements, such as parking lot repavings and locker refurbishings, as well as technology and classroom enhancements, such as computer upgrades and the development of a sixth-grade learning center.
``We'll have to consider paying for these projects through bond issues or other alternative funding sources,'' Gould said.
Borrowing more money may not seem like a viable option for an indebted school district still paying off a bond issue from six years ago. But a local bond expert outlined several options that could cover needed improvement projects and not increase tax rates.
If current debt payments are restructured, said Chris Corcoran, a PNC Bank financial consultant, the district ``can borrow as little as $1 million or up to $4 million without adding a single mill to your budget.''
In addition, any new money borrowed that is not immediately needed could be invested, Corcoran said, raising thousands of dollars in interest that could be used to pay off existing debts.
Board member Steve Worob questioned why the district would want to borrow more money when in just two years it will have completely paid off roughly $640,000 in debts.
Corcoran answered that even though the district would be out of debt, it still would not have the money it needs now - or in the future - to pay for maintenance and improvement projects.
``You have to borrow money now just to get you through the next year,'' said Corcoran, whom the district had asked to advise it on bond matters. ``You have to. There's no way of getting around that.''
A big part of the reason to borrow more funds, school officials said, is an estimated $676,000 in unanticipated personnel costs that will be covered by the current school budget. That money, which budgeters had anticipated would be a surplus available for the forthcoming budget, largely evaporated with a January court decision that forced the district to rehire several janitors and secretaries laid off in 1992.
Besides paying the new staff salaries and back wages under the ruling, an out-of-court settlement paid to former Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg, whom the school board ousted in January with six months remaining on a $95,000 annual contract, further burdened the district and cut into the expected surplus.
School Board Incumbents Ousted After Teacher Strikes November 09, 1989|By Lynda Macellaro and Jonathan Berr, Special to The Inquirer
In the wake of bitter teachers' strikes this fall, Bristol Borough and Morrisville residents each voted Tuesday to oust an incumbent school board member.
Voters ousted Bristol board president Carmen Mignoni, 71. Mignoni, a Democrat, lost to Republican Joyce Frake, 49, a data-entry operator, by 34 votes in the only contested Bristol school election. The new board will choose its new president.
The unofficial tally had Frake winning 1,483 to 1,449.
In Morrisville, Democrat Kristina Makansi, 29, a homemaker, lost her school board seat to Democrat Paul Bunting, 35, an accounting clerk and auditor. Bunting received about 51 percent of the vote to Makansi's 49 percent.
Makansi's was the only contested seat in the election.
"This is the last hurrah for me," Mignoni said in a telephone interview
from his home after the election results were apparent. "In other countries, they might have shot me. But the Bristol people spoke out and said, 'Carmen, get out.' "
The veteran school board member blamed his defeat on his support of the ouster of popular Bristol Borough Junior-Senior High School basketball coach Thomas Kaczor last May. Mignoni was one of two school board members who voted against Kaczor's reinstatement in June.
Bristol Borough Education Association President Patricia Gellard said that she thought that Mignoni's defeat was the result of his handling of the eight- week long teachers' strike in the district.
"When you're president of the school board and the strike is prolonged, I would assume it would have a negative effect on him," Gellard said. "Let's face it, parents wanted their kids back in school."
Bristol Borough school board members Jean Jacoby, Louis Persichetti and William Pezza, who ran unopposed, were re-elected.
Voters in the Morrisville School District also may have voiced displeasure with the school board's handling of the 9-week-old teachers' strike in their ouster of Makansi.
"A lot of people in Morrisville are sick of incumbents, no matter where they are from," said Makansi. "I'm not going to stop caring about education in Morrisville just because I'm not on the school board."
Morrisville school board members Wayne Almond and candidates Thomas Coolbaugh and Alfred Radosti, who ran unopposed, were re-elected.
Superintendent Of Morrisville's Schools Steps Down The School Board Bought Out Cornelius Van Cain's Contract. Former Members Said He Was Forced Out. December 31, 1992|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Cornelius Van Cain's 15-year career in the Morrisville School District ended Tuesday night with a quick vote, a short statement, a $100,000-plus settlement and a deafening silence.
School board members refused to discuss Cain's resignation and settlement or provide the exact amount of the contract buyout. According to a news release handed out after the meeting, Cain was leaving his position as superintendent of the small Bucks County school district to pursue other educational interests.
But former school board members and supporters, who hailed Cain as a dedicated and progressive educator, said the superintendent was pushed out of the job he had held since 1989.
"Van tried very hard to get along with the board," said former board member Wayne Almond, who resigned in August for health and personal reasons. ''This was a carefully orchestrated plot to get him out."
Almond pointed to recent board decisions that shifted several of Cain's responsibilities, such as oversight of personnel and financial matters, to Assistant Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg. Immediately after accepting Cain's resignation, the board appointed Fineburg acting superintendent.
"They had a steady program of taking power away from the superintendent and giving it to the assistant superintendent," Almond said.
Most of the current school board members were voted into office in 1991 on a platform of fiscal responsibility and a pledge not to raise taxes. Several jobs were eliminated and teachers were laid off last spring when the board adopted a 1992-93 budget without a tax increase.
Cain has been credited with designing and implementing an education program - called the "immersion model" - in which students take classes in longer blocks of time. Lessons in core subjects such as math, science and history are coordinated with English, reading and writing assignments. The program started in September.
Yesterday, Cain and board members continued to refuse to comment on his resignation.
"I've really enjoyed these past 15 years and I wish the district well," Cain, 48, said from his home.
The board voted unanimously to accept Cain's resignation and grant him a settlement equal to 1 1/2 years' pay. Board member Thomas Coolbaugh, who has supported Cain, was out of town. Cain, who made $76,000 last year, had 2 1/2 years left on his contract.
"I don't think it's any secret Dr. Cain and the board had a difference of opinion on educational philosophy and how the district should be run," said Phillip Brown, a former board president whose term expired earlier this month. ''They reduced his responsibilities - traditionally those a superintendent needs to run a school district."
John Warenda, who was president during most of his eight-year tenure on the board, said the new board was not letting Cain do his job.
"I don't think they wanted anyone to interfere with their efforts to micro-manage this school district," Warenda said.
Fineburg will serve as acting superintendent until a replacement is found, but has said she is interested in the position. School officials said they would start a search for a new superintendent.
Former Member Appointed To Board January 14, 1990|By Lynda Macellaro, Special to The Inquirer
In a 5-3 vote Wednesday night, the Morrisville school board appointed former school board member Kristina Makansi to fill a vacancy left by another member's resignation.
Former school board member Richard Dobuski resigned in December. His term would have expired in 1991.
Makansi, 29, a homemaker, served on the board from March through December of last year. She was appointed to the board when former member Rose Fogarty resigned. Makansi lost her seat in November's election to Republican Paul Bunting.
The board's selection was based on a 15-minute interview Tuesday night with each of three candidates.
School board president John Warenda Jr. and school board members Philip Brown, Wayne Almond, Robert Piazza Sr. and Thomas Coolbaugh voted in favor of Makansi's appointment. School board members Bunting, Jack Buckman and Alfred Radosti opposed the appointment.
Before the meeting, Makansi said that the board's questioning this time around was more involved than it had been last year. At that time, she said, she wasn't competing with anyone else for the seat.
Makansi decided to apply for the position because she wanted to remain active in school affairs, she said. She said there were some important decisions to be made this year that she wanted to be part of, including a possible merger between the Morrisville and Pennsbury school districts, contract talks, budget sessions and curriculum offerings.
She said she most likely would not run for a seat in the 1991 election
because she and her husband are to begin a business.
Almond said after the meeting that Makansi did extremely well in her interview and that the board was happy to have her back.
Makansi will be formally sworn in at another time.
Board Oks Financing For Study Of Merger August 13, 1989|By Kimberly J. McLarin, Inquirer Staff Writer
The Morrisville school board on Wednesday agreed to spend $11,250 on a study examining the financial and academic impact of a proposed merger with the Pennsbury School District.
The board voted 7-1 in favor of the study, with the understanding that the Pennsbury school board would agree to pay the other half of the study's $22,500 cost. The Pennsbury board is expected to vote on the proposal Aug. 21.
Morrisville board Vice President Philip Brown and members Richard Dobuski, Livia Evans, Wayne Almond, Roy Snare, Kristina Makansi and Robert Piazza voted for the study. Board President John Warenda was absent.
Board member John Buckman voted against the study, calling it a waste of money.
"I've never been in favor of merger anyway, unless the people get the right to vote on it in a referendum," he said.
Buckman also questioned why the board was voting on the issue during an agenda meeting, during which the board normally does not take action.
But Brown said it made sense for the Morrisville board to vote on the proposal first because Morrisville was seeking the merger.
"We're deciding to do the first piece of concrete work that would be necessary if the merger were to happen," he said.
The Morrisville school board voted early this year to seek a merger with the more affluent Pennsbury district, although there had been talk of a merger for much longer.
The small Morrisville district is suffering from a declining tax base and lack of commercial development. As the value of a Morrisville mill has decreased, the number of mills needed to finance the school district has increased drastically, causing taxpayers to cry out.
John Miniscalcl, who said he had recently moved to the district, chastised the school board Wednesday night for the high taxes.
"You're squeezing me until I can't even go out and buy an ice cream cone," he said.
The merger study would be conducted by Rod Johnson of Fairmount Capital Advisors in Philadelphia. It would compare the economic and educational status of the two school districts for the next five years if they remained independent with the economic and educational status of a single district created by a merger in 1990-91 or 1991-92.
The study would project the millage rate of a merged district.
Morrisville has the highest tax rate in Bucks County at 358 mills per $1,000 of assessed valuation. That means the owner of a Morrisville home assessed at the district average of $5,000 will pay $1,790 in school taxes this year.
By comparison, Pennsbury's tax rate for 1989-90 is 254.5 mills. The average home in Pennsbury also is assessed at $5,000, but a homeowner would pay $1,272.50 in school taxes.
At $67.6 million, Pennsbury's budget for the 1989-90 school year is more than eight times larger than Morrisville's $8.29 million budget. Pennsbury has about 9,600 students to Morrisville's roughly 1,100.
School Board Tries To Bar Former Workers' Benefits The Action Heightened Tensions In The Morrisville District. A Union Spokeswoman Called It A Tough Blow. September 26, 1993|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Tensions between the school board and former secretaries and custodians heightened last week when the district made a move to block the ex-workers from receiving unemployment compensation.
Members of the Morrisville Educational Support Personnel Association received a letter from the state last week informing them that the school district was appealing the Bureau of Unemployment Compensation's decision to grant them benefits.
"The board felt that was consistent with the position it has taken and with the unfair-labor-practice charge," said William F. Thompson Jr., an associate of Board Solicitor Ralf Gilbert. "We were at an impasse. The law clearly states they are not entitled to unemployment."
MESPA president Sally Eperjesi said it was a tough blow for union members, who started receiving unemployment benefits only earlier this month.
"We're very upset," she said. "That's our right."
After the contract between the school district and MESPA expired in July, the administration replaced the 16 secretaries and custodians with independent contractors. District officials said that the union never made a realistic offer, and that they were saving money by hiring outside help.
The union then filed an unfair-labor-practice charge with the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board. Union members contended that the board never bargained in good faith, and called the district's actions a lockout. They have been picketing the district's four buildings since July.
The battle spilled into the board's monthly meeting Wednesday night. Students and staff urged the board to resume negotiations, saying the district was in disarray without the MESPA members.
Student Julie Mack told the board that the new workers "don't have a clue what's going on."
"Some don't even speak English," the Morrisville senior said. "They are staring at the girls walking around; we don't feel safe."
Morrisville Education Association president Jane Curry said the board's decision to use independent contractors had "proved to be disastrous to the educational program."
The board listened silently to most of the comments. But board President James Murray chastised Curry for her public statements.
"That is an inappropriate statement to make at a board meeting," Murray said. "You should have talked about this during the meet-and-discuss session," referring to private meetings between the board and staff members.
Although Murray and the other board members kept silent for the rest of the session, he disputed the public comments after the meeting.
"Our dispute with the MESPA is in the court; we believe we dealt with them fairly," Murray said. "Things (in the schools) are going well enough. Some people are trying to make them go not as well."
Morrisville School Board Member Steps Down James Murray Fought A Bitter Battle To Keep His Seat, Then Decided He Didn't Want To Serve In The Minority. December 15, 1995|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
School board member James Murray spent months duking it out over the November election - a nasty and bitter battle between incumbents and challengers that was waged at meetings and in local newspaper editorial pages.
Murray held onto his seat firmly while two of his incumbent colleagues were defeated.
But Murray quit Wednesday night, abandoning his new four-year term before it begins, saying he did not want to serve on the school board if he had to be in the minority.
"I'll be sorry to see him go," said board member Frank McCarthy. "He had a lot to offer."
Murray, who was not at the meeting, sent his resignation in a letter and did not return phone calls yesterday. In the letter, he wrote that he had been reluctant to run in the first place and that he felt the nastiness of the campaign had been unfairly targeted at him.
"As it turned out, most of the people who are my closest allies on the board were defeated in the election, and it is now clear to me that I would have little influence on future actions of the board," Murray wrote. "I learned that there are few frustrations more discouraging and that there is no greater waste of time than to be a minority member on a school board."
Before the election, Murray was in a solid conservative majority; controversial votes usually went 7-1, with only board member Paul Nestor objecting. Now, many expect the three new board members to join Nestor.
Although board members said they did not know about Murray's plans to resign, most did not seem surprised as board President Ed Nelson read the resignation letter. When the board voted to accept Murray's resignation, the ''ayes" were barely audible.
"I didn't always agree with Mr. Murray, but I congratulate him for taking the time and energy to do all that he did over the years," Nestor said.
Other board members shared his sentiments.
"He did his best for education. He cared about education, and he always was a champion of the taxpayer," said board member Stephen Worob. "I think he has helped a lot of people afford to remain in this town."
The board must choose a replacement within 30 days. Anyone who is interested should submit a resume to District Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg.
The board will hold a special meeting Jan. 10 to select an interim member. Two possible candidates mentioned so far are the board members unseated in last month's election - Marvin Dupree and Marlys Mihok.
Dupree, who was at the meeting, said he would submit his application. Mihok could not be reached for comment. Randy Kenner, also defeated a month ago, has expressed interest in running for Borough Council.
School Board Candidate Picked To Fill Vacant Seat July 25, 1993|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
As one of three school board candidates to win spots on both the Democratic and Republican ballots, Frank McCarthy is virtually guaranteed a seat in the November election.
But now he's going to get an early start.
On Wednesday, the Morrisville school board appointed McCarthy to finish the term of Thomas Coolbaugh, who resigned because he is moving out of the borough.
McCarthy, 37, will be sworn in sometime in August, school district officials said. He will serve in Coolbaugh's seat until the term expires at the end of November.
McCarthy and resident Thomas Wisnosky were nominated to fill the seat at Wednesday's special meeting. Although Board President James Murray nominated Wisnosky, he followed the other board members and voted for McCarthy.
"Frank is a lifetime resident, he has two children in the schools and is a graduate of the school," Murray said after the vote. "I know he would make an excellent board member, as would (Wisnosky). I just think we should have a unanimous vote here."
McCarthy graduated from Morrisville High School in 1973. He works as a supervisor in a petrochemical plant.
Wisnosky is a member of the Morrisville Economic Development Corp. and active in a local theater group, Murray said. Both Wisnosky and McCarthy were interviewed by the board before the meeting.
Before his resignation, Coolbaugh had been the only school board member with children enrolled in the Morrisville school system.
It just cracks me up to read in this stuff the times Eileen Dreisbech (spelling?) was so strongly, openly against the dealings of people who are now some of her best buds.
"The district also may need to find an additional $670,000 to pay for proposed capital-improvement projects that will not be covered under the forthcoming budget."
"The list includes basic maintenance improvements, such as parking lot repavings and locker refurbishings, as well as technology and classroom enhancements, such as computer upgrades and the development of a sixth-grade learning center."
"A big part of the reason to borrow more funds, school officials said, is an estimated $676,000 in unanticipated personnel costs that will be covered by the current school budget. That money, which budgeters had anticipated would be a surplus available for the forthcoming budget, largely evaporated with a January court decision that forced the district to rehire several janitors and secretaries laid off in 1992."
"Besides paying the new staff salaries and back wages under the ruling, an out-of-court settlement paid to former Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg, whom the school board ousted in January with six months remaining on a $95,000 annual contract, further burdened the district and cut into the expected surplus."
So locking out MESPA workers and losing the resulting lawsuit and having to pay back wages, combined with ditching a Superintendent and paying her not to work, evaporated funds for things like basic maintenance, parking lot pavings, technology and classroom enhancements, etc.
Some very familiar names were in the thick of it all.
I don't think they are actually close. I think its a matter of things like Eileen D. is friends with Pat Broffman who is friends with people like Mihok, from what I've seen anyway. And, of course, there's the fact that she'll jump through whatever hoops Jane Burger tells her to so if Burger tells her to make nice with certain people now, I have no doubt Eileeen would, no matter what went on in the past. It is wild that Eileen will support ideas now that she would not support when her own children were in school. Sad...
Here's the main point I'm seeing from these articles:
Radosti, Mihok, Worob, and their anti-tax, anti-cooperation, my way or the highway compatriots have been in power in Morrisville for 25 years and we have noting to show for it.
They have had the advantage of having 25 years of spreading whatever they want around town. No wonder so many long time residents are so misguided by these people.
I don't think a lot of people pay attention when it comes to the school board stuff for whatever reasons. Seems to me that people may know those names for years and years & automatically put them back in the seats without ever really getting to know what kind of people they are. I would think there is a large majority of the population in town who has no idea what effects a school board can have on the entire town when they vote on election day.
We have plenty to show for this...Crumbling infrastructure, a plethora of tobacco shops and nail salons, a blighted main street, more gang activity, and the endless acrimony of the townspeople toward each other. It's a wonder to behold, and yet with all of this negativity, we have wonderful families and neighbors, beautiful homes in charming neighborhoods, a history rich in important people and events, a great canal and glorious river. Just imagine if a tenth of the potential that the ville holds was realized instead of squandered in petty disputes and lifelong grudges. It is saddening to see the names being mentioned in these articles, and these same people still following the same destructive paths today.
“The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.”
Letters: Morrisville Matters v. Stay on Track Published: Sunday, April 10, 2011
Concerning your article titled “Morrisville Matters: Balance on school board is essential” found in the March 31 edition, I feel that you should have added the byline, “paid for by the candidates of Morrisville Matters.” As someone who follows the Morrisville School System very closely I was surprised at what I read. Especially since the current school board, which has not cut one class, one teacher, one program or one sports activity. However, they have been able to lower property taxes for two years in a row and added girls softball. How, you might ask? They have, under the leadership of the school board president, Bill Hellmann, reduced wasteful spending and finally staunched the hemorrhaging of money so familiar these days within other school districts. It is so obvious that no one checked the statements in this article made by the Morrisville Matters candidates. My hope is that you give equal space to the Stay on Track candidates for Morrisville School Board. It would seem only fair in a free press society.
Radosti and Buckman refuse to look for professional advice.
Board To Pay For Financial Advice January 13, 1991|By Michelle Rizzo, Special to The Inquirer
Looking for advice on how to deal with its financial morass, the Morrisville school board voted, 4-3, last week to turn to consultants from the University of Pennsylvania.
The district said it would pay up to $5,000 for the help, prompting board member Paul Bunting to complain, "Here we go again, expending more public funds on lawyers and consultants."
Professors from Penn's Graduate School of Education and its Wharton School of Business will be hired by Morrisville to "help the district develop alternative ways to deal with our financial problems," according to a handout distributed to the public.
"We're hoping to do two things," Superintendent C. Van Cain told reporters after a board meeting Wednesday. "One is to try to make our education program even better." The other is "to learn some of the newest techniques in the business world," he said.
The program, which board President Philip Brown said would cost "no more than $5,000," will start during the current school year and will go on indefinitely. In an interview after the meeting, Brown said the entire program, which is to be implemented in three phases, might last two to five years.
The goals, Brown said, are to show district leaders how to improve their managerial skills, cut costs and entice businesses to donate more resources to the cause of education.
The plan is the brainchild of Charles Dwyer, a Penn professor, and Harris Sokoloff, executive director of the Suburban Schools Studies Council, Brown said.
"They give it to us, but we develop it ourselves. It's ours. It's not something that we're hiring them to do for us. They will be consulting with us in terms of ideas - ways we can find to get the maximum creativity and involvement of people who make up the administration," he said.
Three board members - John Buckman, Alfred A. Radosti and Bunting - opposed the plan.
In other business, the board discussed the possible abolishment of Assistant Superintendent Betsy Fineburg's position. If the board votes on Jan. 23 to do away with the $54,000-a-year position, Fineburg may be out of a job on June 30. Cain said no decision had yet been made to try to find another spot for Fineburg.
Fineburg has been working for the district for almost 27 years. She said the district might let her go three years before she would be entitled to retirement benefits.
In Morrisville, A Bitter End To A Bitter Teachers' Strike April 01, 1990|By Michelle Rizzo and Kimberly J. McLarin, Special to The Inquirer
Read the full article at the link because there's no news in this one at all. Radosti and Buckman said no once again and Buckman stormed from another meeting because the meanies on the other side voted against him.
"Voting no were board members John R. Buckman, Paul Bunting and Alfred A. Radosti."
"Morrisville teachers are not underpaid; the problem is, teachers in the surrounding districts are overpaid," Bunting said amid cheers and whistles. ''If they want economic parity with Council Rock, they should go teach in Council Rock. This is not a contract, it's an obscenity!"
"Bunting and Buckman stormed from the meeting after the vote was taken and did not return."
Morrisville Superintendent's Contract Renewed September 29, 1991
Nothing new here either. Radosti and Buckman said no again.
"After a sometimes heated discussion, members of the Morrisville school board voted, 5-3, to extend the contract of the superintendent for three years, and also to increase his salary by 13 percent for the current school year.
The raise will boost Superintendent Cornelius V. Cain's annual salary from $67,000 to $76,000.
The discussion Wednesday produced passionate words of support from parents, district principals and others. An evaluation committee, made up of four board members and formed to rate Cain's performance, repeatedly rated him ''outstanding" and "exceptional."
About 50 people attended the meeting, most in support of retaining Cain. The overflow crowd prompted the meeting to be moved from the small classroom regularly used for board meetings to the auditorium of the high school.
Others, however, such as the five people who are all but assured of winning election to the board in November, wanted the issue deferred to the new board. So, too, did current board members John Buckman and Paul Bunting.
Buckman, Bunting and Alfred Radosti voted against the raise and contract extension..."
Divided Board Approves Budget For Bucks County Tech School The $13.8 Million Plan Is Nearly Twice The Previous Budget. Two Participating Districts Say They're Paying Too Much. May 15, 2000|By Matthew P. Blanchard, INQUIRER SUBURBAN STAFF
A divisive budget season for the Bucks County Technical School has ended, with the school's joint board voting to adopt a controversial $13.8 million budget by the narrowest possible margin.
But the approval Thursday night came at the cost of one board member's resignation, and a continuing sense of discord among the six school districts that send students to the school.
"Supporters of the budget needed a minimum of 28 votes from the 54-member board, and 28 was all they got. Morrisville and Bristol Borough voted to reject the budget, saying it was an unfair burden on their tiny districts."
"But speaking before the vote, Morrisville School Board member Ed Nelson said he had been misled about the share Morrisville would have to pay when he voted in 1995 in favor of the school's $42 million expansion.
"Some promises were made for Morrisville's vote," Nelson said. "All Morrisville is asking for now is the financial relief we were led to believe would take place."
"Nelson then announced his resignation from the board. "You got the school you wanted," he said. "I hope everyone is happy about it."
"The four larger districts - Bensalem, Bristol Township, Neshaminy and Pennsbury - expect to send between 320 and 450 students to the tech school. Theoretically, that is enough to start cutting teacher positions and saving money in their regular schools."
"The smallest districts - Morrisville and Bristol Borough - expect to send fewer than 65 students each, and worry they will be unable to achieve any savings. They opposed the budget in the hope of reworking the formula by which costs are allocated among the six districts."
Accreditation Is Questioned To Pare Budget October 14, 1990|By Michelle Rizzo, Special to The Inquirer
Looking for excess fat in an already lean budget, a Morrisville school board member has suggested doing away with accreditation for the middle-senior high school.
"I really wonder whether this is worth having," board member John Buckman said Wednesday at a board meeting, questioning the expense of applying for accreditation from the Middle States Association of Schools and Colleges.
The school has enjoyed a high rating from the Middle States Association - an independent, nonprofit accrediting agency - for at least 12 years. Every 10 years, the agency sends a team of educators and administrators to each school that applies to determine if its curriculum and facilities meet educational standards. Applicants must first complete an in-depth self- evaluation for one year.
So Hot, It Might As Well Not Be Spring Yet Another Scorcher Closes Area Schools June 01, 1991|By Tanya Barrientos, Inquirer Staff Writer
"Even the alligators at the zoo, the kings of heat and humidity, hated it. That's how hot it was."
"It was 89 degrees in one of our second-floor elementary classrooms at 9 a.m.," said Van Cain, superintendent of the Morrisville School District in Bucks County."
"If we didn't close, we were afraid our students would become ill because of the heat. Our nurses warned that that is a real possibility," Cain said."
"Seventy-five percent of the district's budget is spent on salaries and benefits. "What needs to happen is we need to pay these salaries to less people. Less people means less teachers."
Raymond Dominski, Tax Activist September 05, 1994|By Rich Heidorn Jr., INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
Raymond S. Dominski, 67, a Morrisville school board member who once urged residents to "get out torches, pitchforks and battering rams" to press Pennsylvania lawmakers for more education funding, died Friday at Mercer Medical Center in Trenton.
Mr. Dominski became active in civic affairs after his retirement, serving as vice president of the Morrisville Taxpayers Association and leading opposition in 1990 to a teachers' contract that included a sharp salary increase.
After his 1991 election to the school board, he called repeatedly on the state legislature to reform the way schools are funded. With the property tax base crippled by the loss of industry, school officials in the blue-collar borough have been forced to cut programs, close two elementary schools, and raise taxes.
Morrisville is one of about 120 districts challenging the disparities in the state's property tax-based school financing system. Pretrial matters in the 1991 suit are scheduled to be heard in Commonwealth Court this fall.
Last year, frustrated over another property tax increase, Mr. Dominski proposed that the district run bingo nights to raise funding.
"I'm a board member and a tax protester," he once explained. "I'm trying to convey the message that increasing taxes every year is not the answer."
Mr. Dominski was a Philadelphia native and longtime Bucks County resident.
He was an Army veteran of World War II and a recipient of the Victory medal.
A graduate of LaSalle University, Mr. Dominski retired several years ago after about 35 years as a department manager for Unisys Corp. He also was a part-time real estate salesman and formerly owned a travel agency in Morrisville.
Surviving are his wife, H. Patricia Walsh Dominski; daughters, Kathleen Dornbaum and Lisa Breuner; a son, Derek; a stepson, Richard P. Peregoy; his father, Raymond; three sisters, and three grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. tomorrow at the Hutchinson Memorial Chapel of the First Presbyterian Church of Morrisville, 771 N. Pennsylvania Ave.
Bingo Proposed To Ease Morrisville's Tax Rate May 30, 1993|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
There were lots of empty seats at last week's school board meeting. But there are rarely any empty seats in a bingo hall.
Which gave school board member Raymond Dominski an idea - why not organize bingo games to help raise money for the financially strapped district?
"Bingo is very popular," Dominski said at Wednesday's school board meeting. "There's a lot of revenue to be had."
Faced with a proposed budget that calls for a tax rate increase of 95 mills, school board members said they were open to any alternative means of raising money.
Board Solicitor Ralf Gilbert said he would have to study the Pennsylvania laws concerning gambling as well as the school code to determine whether the district could host bingo games.
Earlier this month, the board reluctantly adopted a preliminary $10.2 million budget for the 1993-94 school year. Under that plan, a homeowner whose property is assessed at the borough average of $4,000 would pay $380 more in taxes.
With the present tax rate of 390.95 mills, the school tax bill on the same house is $1,563.80. Board members pledged to cut the budget and have already trimmed about 1 mill.
Last year the board was able to prevent a tax increase through a reorganization of the school system, which serves about 1,100 students. Several staff members, including teachers, were laid off. Officials have not said whether more staff cuts are being considered.
Dominski said the board was open to all ideas on raising revenue without raising taxes. He said bingo games would be popular.
"I'm sure we'll have a better turnout than what we have here tonight," Dominski said. Only a handful of people attended Wednesday's meeting, and most were district staffers and newspaper reporters.
In the nearby Pennsbury School District, the school board is considering adopting three taxes - an admissions tax, a mechanical-device tax and a landfill tax - to help bring in revenue. Dominski said he doubted the Morrisville school board would consider approving any additional taxes.
The board is scheduled to hold a budget hearing on Wednesday and adopt the final budget on June 16.
In other business, the board voted to appoint Marvin DuPree as secretary and Shirley McGoldrick as treasurer of the school board.
Foes Say Morrisville Councilman Is Jumping Gun On Idea For School March 27, 1992|By Jeffrey Fleishman, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
John Engelberger's opinions and how he expresses them have often put him through the wringer in the hardscrabble river town of Morrisville.
In May, Engelberger, a borough councilman and a member of the National Rifle Association, carried what some said was a holstered pistol to a town meeting to protest an ordinance banning guns from the municipal building.
This time, Engelberger wants the Morrisville School District to accept his plan to teach firearms safety to students. The instruction could be done in physical education classes, much the same way children are taught about sex and baseball, according to letters Engelberger sent to school and police officials.
"It's stupid," said Lee D. Rockafellow, mayor of this Bucks County town of 10,000. "I don't think he thinks things through. The teaching of gun handling should not be done in school. It actually forces the use of weapons."
Engelberger said he was trying to save lives. He said that children increasingly were exposed to guns and that too many of them were becoming casualties.
"We can all wish that guns will go away, but that won't happen," he said. ''What I'm saying is give these kids safety training that (says) 'Hey, this is dangerous.' "
He said he was willing to take his idea a step further. "I'm not opposed to an (extracurricular) marksmanship program," said Engelberger, 61. "I don't see guns any worse than basketball. I think childen who do know how to shoot are more careful."
School Superintendent Cornelius Van Cain said district officials were studying Engelberger's safety proposal, which the councilman made to Cain in a letter last month.
"Don't say NO and risk the life of one of your students to a firearms tragedy because of ignorance," the letter stated.
Cain said he agreed that the availability of guns had put children increasingly at risk. But he said he was not convinced that schools should be used "to fix all of society's problems. It is an issue today, but should schools have a role in this and what should the extent of it be? I'm not sure we should have guns in classrooms."
School board member Paul Bunting said he saw merit in the idea, but questioned the role of the school. He added sarcastically: "As long as we're going to be dealing with AIDS and drugs and teenage pregnancy, why not throw in firearms? . . . the cesspool of stuff that doesn't belong in the school anyway."
(Page 2 of 2) Rockafellow, who belongs to the same local gun club as Engelberger, isn't so philosophical: "Tell Cain if he's considering it, he's nuts."
In 1990, Bucks County's Juvenile Probation Office reported four incidents of youths carrying guns and knives into schools. That figure jumped to 26 in 1991.
Two youths were arrested at a school in central Bucks County last year for carrying guns. "We are seeing an increasing number of kids in schools with guns," said Robert Stanzione, a probation office supervisor.
The National Center for Health Statistics reported that in 1989 - the most recent data available - 4,384 youths ages 19 and under were killed by firearms. More than 560 of them were accidental.
Schools in a number of states, including Florida and California, are using videos and coloring books as part of gun safety programs. Engelberger said the NRA and other groups provided some of these instructional materials.
Cain said there had not been one gun incident in his 14 years with the Morrisvile district.
"I just don't think it's an issue," said Joanne Poland, president of the Parent Teacher Organization. "We have a lot of other crises to deal with, why
draw attention to something that's not an issue?"
But even Engelberger's critics said they don't doubt his genuine concern on most issues. Engelberger suggested two years ago that council members give up one month's salary - $140 - and offer it as reward money to catch vandals who were desecrating a cemetery.
Some described him as a passionate intellectual whose ideas are sometimes discarded because of his extreme tactics.
One of those times came in May, when Engelberger showed up at a town meeting carrying a holster to mock a 1982 township ordinance to keep firearms out of the municipal building. Engelberger never said what was in the holster, but several officials said it contained a gun.
He incurred the wrath of some of his colleagues. "You should be ashamed," Councilwoman Patricia Schell told then.
But Engelberger sat there undaunted. Nobody came to arrest him.
He will not be ignored, either. Since February, he has sent Cain three letters proposing gun safety classes.
"I recognize it's a touchy issue," he said in a recent interview. "I just feel there's a necessity . . . to say, 'Don't touch it, you can kill your friend.' "
"We applaud what Mr. Engelberger is doing," said John Jones, a Republican committeeman and a firearms safety instructor for the NRA. "But, not to make a pun, he does tend to shoot himself in the foot now and then. He's the Teddy Roosevelt of the Morrisville council."
Ahh - John Engelberger - brought Jane Burger to council and taught her the basics of everything she knows today, trusted her then fell asleep while she took everything from him. LOL
"True or False? said... Letters: Morrisville Matters v. Stay on Track Published: Sunday, April 10, 2011
Concerning your article titled “Morrisville Matters: Balance on school board is essential” found in the March 31 edition, I feel that you should have added the byline, “paid for by the candidates of Morrisville Matters.” As someone who follows the Morrisville School System very closely I was surprised at what I read. Especially since the current school board, which has not cut one class, one teacher, one program or one sports activity. However, they have been able to lower property taxes for two years in a row and added girls softball. How, you might ask? They have, under the leadership of the school board president, Bill Hellmann, reduced wasteful spending and finally staunched the hemorrhaging of money so familiar these days within other school districts. It is so obvious that no one checked the statements in this article made by the Morrisville Matters candidates. My hope is that you give equal space to the Stay on Track candidates for Morrisville School Board. It would seem only fair in a free press society.
Diane Hughes, Morrisville"
What I find very sad about this article is that Diane Hughes is a retired public school teacher.
Isn't "Stay on Track" the 2009 version of the Morrisville Tea Party while the 2011 version is using "Stay on Course"? Is this useless letter another recycled piece of dreck from the past?
if you people cannot see the common links of people throughout the last 20-30 years here in morrisville and vote for them again you deserve what you get. get rid of a few of the names this time around. you should be angry. Are you? Are you angry enough?
Narcissistic personality disorder is a condition in which people have an inflated sense of self-importance and an extreme preoccupation with themselves. Causes, incidence, and risk factors
The causes of this disorder are unknown. An overly sensitive personality and parenting problems may affect the development of this disorder. Symptoms
A person with narcissistic personality disorder may:
React to criticism with rage, shame, or humiliation
Take advantage of other people to achieve his or her own goals
Have excessive feelings of self-importance
Exaggerate achievements and talents
Be preoccupied with fantasies of success, power, beauty, intelligence, or ideal love
Have unreasonable expectations of favorable treatment
Need constant attention and admiration
Disregard the feelings of others, and have little ability to feel empathy
MEET THE SUPERINTENDENT: Bill Ferrara sets out to prove why Morrisville School District is 'the best kept secret in Bucks County'
By John Williams BucksLocalNews.com
Contributed photo
View and purchase photos MORRISVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT – William “Bill” Ferrara vividly remembers the year 2006 – his first year at Morrisville School District. At the time, he was the assistant principal at Morrisville Senior-Middle High School and recalls the feelings among students in his school.
“When I first came to Morrisville, it wasn’t the ‘cool’ thing to be smart,” he explained. “Students are now aware that there’s been a culture change.”
Ferrara said it was a turning point in Morrisville School District history. Teachers are articulating to students that they can be successful and, in turn, students are beginning to come around, he claims.
“Something can’t be taken away from you unless you let it be taken away from you,” said Ferrara.
Ferrara, who is originally from Feasterville and a graduate of Neshaminy High School, moved on to complete his higher education studies at the College of New Jersey, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in health and physical education and, later, a master of administration degree in physical education.
Soon after, he became a physical education teacher at a familiar location – his high school alma mater, Neshaminy. He was a teacher for 14 years, including a department chairperson for the health and physical education department before he took the position of assistant principal for a brief two-year stint.
Besides Neshaminy, Ferrara served as an assistant principal in Salisbury Township in the Lehigh Valley.
Ferrara was also an assistant football coach at Neshaminy, lending his offensive expertise to Head Coach Pat Bedesem’s staff. He said Bedesem had a tremendous impact on him.
Ferrara, himself, played wide out for Neshaminy in the late 70s, although, he joked, you will “never see my name in the record books for most receiving touchdowns.”
Ferrara served two years as an assistant principal in Morrisville School District and one-year as principal. He admits that he was fortunate to work with some great leaders during his time at Neshaminy.
“I had the privilege to work for Gary Bowman, who taught me to treat people as individuals first and as teachers, students, colleagues, et cetera, second,” he said. “You need to try and understand their point of view. It’s crucial.
“Your goal as an educator, as a leader, is to put people at the same table and make sound decisions that everyone can feel they had a hand in,” Ferrara continued.
Bruce Wyatt, former director of secondary education at Neshaminy High School, who retired from education in 2008, also played an influential role in developing his leadership abilities.
Morrisville School District is “the best kept secret in Bucks County,” Ferrara articulated, all while characterizing the school district’s teaching staff as “phenomenal.”
“You never hear anyone say ‘It’s not my job’ or ‘I can’t do this or that.’ Instead, they ask ‘How can I get this done?’ or ‘What can I do to make it happen? I’ve said it for years; Morrisville is the best kept secret in Bucks County."
He went on to say, “The Morrisville community is very fortunate to have the administrative team and teachers that we have. The school board meetings always look rehearsed, but when everything is broken down each member has the applicable information two or three weeks ahead of time. When the community gets involved with the superintendents advisory board it’s very laid back and we have open dialogue, which is what we need to keep the community pulse and some moral compass.”
He said without the fervent support of his family, he wouldn’t be able to do his job.
“There are people outside of education, such as my parents, who are hardworking lower-middle class parents, and my family, that are behind me 100 percent,” Ferrara said. “Without strong support at home, you couldn’t do this job.”
Ferrara’s son, Tyler, 19, graduated from Neshaminy this past year and is attending Bucks County Community College. He wants to transfer to Temple University and pursue a degree in mechanical engineering. Courtney, Ferrara’s daughter, is going into her senior year at Neshaminy. After high school, Courtney, who is 17-years-old, wants to head south to “Rocky Top” and attend school at the University of Tennessee for sports management.
He also took time to highlight some goals for the district.
“I think, basically, it’s paramount to offer a level of education to our students that’s high,” he explained. “How do we make education for our students better and how can they be productive in the classroom? Some students may feel they need to be more independent, some may not, so the more opportunities we give them, the more likely they are to be successful.”
He feels very strong about “professional development” for his teaching staff.
“We’re big on formative assessment,” Ferrara said. “More times than not, our teachers are the facilitators and they must be able to provide a quality education and work within a budget that works for our taxpayers.”
Morrisville doesn’t always receive praise from outside of the district, Ferrara confesses, but avowals that “we have great kids, teachers, professional staff and administrators.”
“The community needs to get together and make that point,” he stressed. “We will keep making that known.”
“This is a great place for me to be now in my career,” Ferrara announced, “because I’m surrounded by great people. Hopefully I can make the Morrisville School District proud and revitalize pride within our community.”
I have not been impressed by Ferrara so far. As far as I can see, he's just another SOC lackey and this is just another piece of propaganda planted in the newspaper.
"Morrisville School District is “the best kept secret in Bucks County,” Ferrara articulated, all while characterizing the school district’s teaching staff as “phenomenal.”
“You never hear anyone say ‘It’s not my job’ or ‘I can’t do this or that.’ Instead, they ask ‘How can I get this done?’ or ‘What can I do to make it happen? I’ve said it for years; Morrisville is the best kept secret in Bucks County."
The truth is that the moral of the staff is very low, just ask them privately. Of course he wouldn't hear them complain, they may as well make out their own pink slip if they dare.
"Hopefully I can make the Morrisville School District proud and revitalize pride within our community"?
Really? All this time a figured it was a self preserevation kind of thing on his part, that he was trying to resurrect his career in Morrisville following scandal at his old job.
But now I get it - he's doing what he does for us. I feel much better now. The fate of the children of Morrisville Borough are in good hands. (sarcasm)
Don't get me wrong, I do think he is trying to balance the needs of the school district with the wants of the school board. Could I do what he does? No, I don't think I could for a minute. I couldn't sell myself out for a paycheck. He needed a job and was given one in the Morrisville School District. I get why he has become such a good friend to the school board, he needs the job. After all look what happened to Dr. Yonson for showing her honesty & integrity.
Gov. Corbett received quite a beating over his very lean state budget, some of it deserved. Perhaps the worst pummeling had to do with $900 million in education cuts. A significant number that forced school districts to take a knife to their own budgets. A lot of programs took big hits and local taxes will go up to make up for the loss of state funds.
The governor was asked about this following a speech to a police chiefs group. What he said should become fodder for this year’s school board elections.
School boards, he said, should have planned better. He was referring to the fact that local school officials conveniently and lazily balanced their budgets on the back of $2 billion in now-vanished federal stimulus money. He’s right. Former Gov. Ed Rendell gifted the money to school districts. It should have been used for capital projects; in other words, to build, expand and repair. The money was supposed to “stimulate” the economy by being spent in ways that would create jobs. The only jobs affected by Pennsylvania’s stimulus money was teaching jobs, as school boards used the federal dough to make payroll.
Problem is, the money was temporary. Local officials knew it would go away, but they used it to balance their budgets anyway.
That was poor planning.
Making matters worse, many districts did not mind Corbett’s call for districts to freeze wages. That would have saved about $400 million, which would have significantly blunted the loss of the federal stimulus funds.
That irresponsible decision should now stimulate election debate.
"this is just another piece of propaganda planted in the newspaper."
I'm not sure this is a fair characterization. Sometimes being a leader means telling people how awesome they are even though you know about and are (hopefully) trying to correct their shortcomings.
I think it is great that he is in the paper telling everyone how awesome M'ville is. Flaws? Sure we got 'em. Who doesn't? But it sure is nice to read something positive about our little boro and I am thrilled that he's putting it out there. He didn't say how great the school board is, he said, “we have great kids, teachers, professional staff and administrators.”
"Really? All this time a figured it was a self preserevation kind of thing on his part, that he was trying to resurrect his career in Morrisville following scandal at his old job."
115 comments:
I like the graphics Ben's Deli painted on the east side of the building. It gives it a little flair and looks well done, not cheesy.
yes, very nice I agree. yea Bens
NOTICE
The School Directors of the School District of Borough of Morrisville will hold a Special Meeting on July 20, 2011, 7:30 pm, for the purpose of approving the Grandview Elementary School Paving Bid and such other lawful matters as may come before the Board.
The School District intends to award an Act77/39 Performance Contract at this Special Meeting. Following is pertinent information regarding that Contract:
Owner:
School District of Borough of Morrisville, 550 W. Palmer Street, Morrisville, PA 19067
Contractor:
GreenTech Energy Services
122 E. Kings Highway, Suite 503, Maple Shade, NJ 80852
Sub-Contractors:
CM3 Building Solutions, Clear Sound
Contract Terms: Total Contract Installed Cost = $787,683.00
All Act 77 information is available in the Business Office.
The meeting will be held in the LGI Room of the Intermediate/Senior High School located at 550 W. Palmer Street, Morrisville, PA.
Marlys Mihok
Board Secretary
1 t Jy 3
Appeared in: Bucks County Courier Times on Sunday, 07/03/2011
Anybody have better luck looking up information on this company than me?
"GreenTech Energy Services - Lighing Retrofit Services" was all I could find. It gave a website but I didn't have any luck getting directed to it.
For a paving project? I must be missing something. Is it a real company?
I found this:
http://www.greentechenergy.com/index.asp
On the website it says:
"GreenTech Energy Services
GreenTech Energy Services is an innovative energy services company that provides its customers with cost-effective energy reduction solutions. With dramatic increases in the cost of energy, GreenTech is uniquely positioned to provide our customers with extremely attractive cost savings while at the same time upgrading their buildings environmental systems. From coast to coast we have provided our customers with guaranteed energy reduction solutions in over 4,000 commercial buildings.
Financing: Our programs can be purchased directly or financed through a lease purchase option. This option allows a customer upgrade their systems with no money upfront, payments can be spread out over a period of time which, in many cases can provide a positive cash flow."
Under this it lists the following services:
Lighting Retrofit Solutions
Building Automation Systems
Solar Power Systems
Motor Control Systems
HVAC Replacement
Although I did not read everything on the website yet, what I did read says nothing about paving.
Where did we find almost $800K in the budget?
did you see your budget cut for this year? ask your board on 7/20 what the reduced budget numbers represent for your Fall start of school? Angry yet www.angryyet.net
I think the GreenTech, CM3 Building Solutions, Clear Sound $800k stuff is the Act 77 lighting project and sound in the auditorium. It says all Act 77 info is available in the Business Office. Anyone want to pay a visit?
Does anyone know how much area they are planning on paving? That price seems awfully high to me. At $5/sq foot, that would be 157,536 square feet (not quite 400x400).
According to this online calculator (which I realize is not an accurate way to do things), in Trenton, NJ, the cost per sq ft should be $2.55, which, at that cost, would get us 308,895 square feet, or about 555x555. Looking at Google Map of the property, the existing asphault, including the basketball court, is around 30,000 sq ft.
http://www.buildingjournal.com/asphalt-driveway-estimating.html
Google Map of the School
Also, anyone know how much the other bids were and by whom they were submitted?
Introduction
The Guaranteed Energy Savings Act (GESA) is provided for under Chapter 37 of Act 57 (1998),
and as amended by Act 77 (2003).
The Act provides a procurement tool that seeks to set up a win-win situation between the
university and a qualified Energy Services Company (ESCO). The GESA process is unlike the
typical design-bid-build process in which the lowest responsible bidder wins. The low-bidder
process dictates an incentive to provide the least amount of work and cheapest hardware to
narrowly meet the project requirements described within an Invitation for Bids or a Request for
Proposal. The GESA procurement process selects the ESCO who is the best qualified, provides
the best value, and is the best fit for the university. Moreover, the end result is a performance
contract in which the ESCO provides design-build services, some operations and maintenance
services, and an energy savings guarantee for a period of up to 15 years.
The concept of a GESA is that the cost savings arising from energy savings on an annual basis
are enough to pay the debt on financing for the construction/installation of the energy savings
measures themselves. The original Act allowed for a 10-year cost-recovery/payback period.
The amended Act now allows for a 15-year payback.
Utilizing the GESA procurement process provides universities with a method to obtain capital
improvements by superior providers, not the cheapest. Additionally, the GESA process provides
universities with a performance contract in which the provider guarantees performance, in the
form of energy savings. And lastly, the GESA process provides universities with a funding
source for these capital improvements, rather than taking the funds out of operating budgets or
capital budgets. While the industry practice is often for the ESCO or a third party to arrange
financing for the project, universities will normally use bond financing.
The GESA procurement process is fairly new to most facility managers. Process steps and
standard documentation have been put in place to assist facility managers to procure the best
ESCO for a given facility’s needs. This Appendix provides basic information on GESAs and the
ESCO procurement process. More detailed information is available from the Department of
General Services, and the State System’s Facilities Management Office has developed
comprehensive guidance and sample documents for use by universities.
BTW, the entire property appears to be about 500x500.
Ron Stout's parking lot sketch must have been 3-dimensional, and depicted a monolithic 17 foot high parking lot.
Just kidding - I think the $787,683 is for Act 77 lighting/sound, and the
parking lot cost isn't shown.
Either that, or the parking lot is part of the the $787,683 total.
Don't worry, even though the ad is clear as mud, it'll all be made crystal clear at the meeting - heh heh heh.
this was posted on the old blog 10/09. a great posting to repost for this years election...just replace Morrisville Pride with Morrisville Matters and you have the focused group of parents and community/school volunteers working hard to make the necessary changes on the school board for the future of MHS.
***************************
An open letter to Mr. Buckman
We received this letter from a former student as a response to Mr. Buckman's recent piece in the BCCT. ... It is a great summary of how the students and the community feel about what this board has done to the town and district ....***
Mr. Buckman, ...You stated "...They are on a mission to undermine what we have accomplished in two years and tarnish the reputation of our school district. To get elected!" Mr. Buckman, Damon Miller is one of the most passionate pro- Morrisville School District men I have ever met. He has joined committees to try to make our district better; he comes to concerts and sporting events because he CARES. Damon Miller and his "noisy band" want people to care again about Morrisville and feel PRIDEFUL when they say "I go to Morrisville." You know what happened when your current majority got elected? My class said "At least we won't get affected by this board." I counted the years and started to feel sorry for the students behind us because I knew that you would hurt their education somehow. This proves that it just happened quicker than I expected.......
We need to show that we care about education. Families might actually move in and STAY in Morrisville. Businesses see a rising population and move in to town. Morrisville is back.
we know you heard the complaints about the “sick” M. R. Reiter building, a building you ignored now during two terms on the board of education. Before the explosion, that school building DID affect the performance of the students. ... But, I will refer back to "Damon's Group" for a second and refer to Pride. Would you go to work every day and try hard for a boss who doesn't care about you? I didn't think so. But guess what, that is what you are expecting the students to do. We all believe that the school board doesn't care about us. All we hear at MHS is "money, taxes, money," and not "students, students, students." The kids may not be doing well because they feel you don't care: So... why should they?
Let me finish on this last passage: "I know what it takes to be a good school board member. It takes responsibility, common sense, and the ability to listen." ...So PLEASE start on that and maybe we can get going in the right direction. If you actually felt responsibility, the school would have been maintained right in the first place...If you had common sense, you would see most of the problems are because of the school board’s disinterest in education and its lack of caring about "Student John" instead of how caring much anonymous Student #123 costs to educate and how that cost can that be lowered.
If you listened, you would know that ...they are in this election because they want what is best for the kids and not just their wallets. .... Why? Because they genuinely care about the school. as STUDENTS. Morrisville Pride not only wants there to be a MHS today, but a MHS in the future because they care about
****************
Imagine that, a letter from 2009 but the words still ring true in 2011. A board who does not listen, does not communicate, does not care about the students and looks at everything as a number and not a person!
VOTE Kartal, Parker, Miller and Stoneburner on November 8, 2011!
We communicate, We listen, We engage, We embrace the community, We participate and We bring honesty and integrity to the table!
Listening skills? At the last board meeting, Buckman attributed a question about the Grandview trailers to me (it wasn't), and then didn't answer any of my questions.
Common sense? He also seemed to forget that there are 9 members on the school board.
You gotta practice what you preach. Otherwise, it's hypocritical lip service.
Here is the link to the letter Wanda mentioned: http://morrisvillesfuture.blogspot.com/2009/10/open-letter-to-mr-buckman.html
Here's the Jack Buckman letter: http://morrisvillesfuture.blogspot.com/2009/10/buckmanwhy-must-you-lie.html
And the Damon Miller letter: http://morrisvillesfuture.blogspot.com/2009/10/stay-on-track-slate-looming-train-wreck.html
While we're at it, Dave Stoneburner also had an article posted: http://morrisvillesfuture.blogspot.com/2009/10/board-must-balance-community-needs-and.html
Morrisville Matters offers thoughtful, educated, and involved candidates, past, present, and future.
Jack Buckman's not running this year.
Then again, come to think of it, Jack Buckman probably didn't write the Jack Buckman letter.
Your point is well taken that Stay on Coarse leaves a lot to be desired.
Morrisville Puzzle: How To Cut School Taxes
May 11, 1989|By Kimberly J. McLarin, Inquirer Staff Writer
Mary Jo Grimasuckas is fed up, but then, so is just about every other taxpayer in Morrisville.
Last year the Morrisville school board increased taxes property taxes more than 50 percent. This year the board has proposed increasing the millage rate from 324 mills to 367 mills, a 13 percent increase.
Under the proposed budget, taxes on a house assessed at the district average of $5,000 would increase by $215 from $1,621 to $1,835.
"I don't know how anybody can afford these taxes anymore," Grimasuckas said. "Where is all that money they took from us last year? What did they do with all that money? We're going to have to do something."
If someone in Morrisville is going to have to do something, the question is what. The small district of about 1,100 students has been bypassed by the growth in much of Lower Bucks County. Since 1980, enrollment has shrunk by 25 percent, while the district's tax base has eroded with the loss of several major industries. Property values have stagnated while the tax rate climbed to one of the highest in Bucks County.
"We've gotten to the point in Morrisville where we cannot afford to pay for public education," school board president John Warenda Jr. said.
Warenda said he's not surprised by the taxpayer outcry, but said he's not sure what can be done.
"There's a large outcry every year," he said. "One can hardly blame anybody for being concerned and upset about the possibility of a large tax increase."
Salaries and benefits account for almost 83 percent of the proposed $8.4 million budget, he said. That includes a budgeted 10 percent increase for teachers that has raised the ire of many taxpayers.
But Warenda said that the 10 percent figure used in the budget is an arbitrary number used by administrators because the teacher contract is still being negotiated.
"That's not an actual demand or an actual offer," he said.
Warenda said the opportunities for trimming the budget are limited.
"I hope it will be reduced," he said, "but if it is reduced, it comes out of one of two areas. How much can you cut from building maintainence, books and supplies?"
Warenda said he saw only three solutions to the district's problems: initiate extensive tax reform going beyond what is now being proposed to voters; get more state funding; or merge with the Pennsbury School District.
"I don't see any of them happening quickly," he said. "If somebody else has a better idea, they should step forward."
OK, said John Buckman, member of the school board. Cut spending.
OK, said Marlys Mihok, president of the Morrisville Taxpayers Association.
Cut spending.
"It's tax, tax, tax the people to death here," Buckman said. "The way to correct the problem is to start making cuts. The idea that you can't is ridiculous."
Buckman said as he understood the budget, about 11 mills of the proposed 43-mill increase absolutely must be passed, in part to pay for programs mandated by the state. The rest, he said, is fair game.
"I would love to see us cut that all the way back to the 11," he said. ''Let's go for the works."
Mihok said in the three years since she and her husband moved to Morrisville, their taxes have doubled.
"The people in this district have their backs against the wall," she said.
Warenda, and other school officials, respond that to maintain a quality educational system, you have to pay for it.
And although Buckman and Mihok said they thought the district could cut its spending and still maintain its educational quality, Warenda said not necessarily.
continued ....
The perception already exists that a Morrisville education is poor, despite officials' attempts to point out the district's high scoring on standardized tests. At a recent board meeting parents complained about the lack of some classes and the quality of others at the high school.
"One group doesn't say they want you to spend more but they want a greater degree of services," Warenda said. "The other group won't say they want you to provide less services, but they want you to spend less money. But you don't do more for less," he said. "That's not part of real life."
Is your point that Buckman and Mihok have had poor earnings potential for twenty five years, or that they have had no money management abilities for 25 years? Or that they have been droning talking heads beating the same very dead horse for 25 years?
I choose D-All of the above.
And these two are just two of the many. There are legions of old articles citing the same problems, the same group of "leaders," the same empty words and the long history of a failure to correct these problems, instead wallowing in the stagnation of inactivity, fear of change and hiding behind empty words. The other side of this coin is the groups who have tried to bring about change, and the way in which they were quickly demonized and subsequently deposed, re-opening the door for the same group of lack-wits to step back into these roles and ensure 4 more years of a do-nothing leadership.
Nailed it!
http://articles.philly.com/1988-05-20/news/26262533_1_tax-rate-school-boards-calculus
Tiny Bucks School District Looks For Help In Merger
May 20, 1988|By Sara Solovitch, Inquirer Staff Writer
The Morrisville School District, one of the oldest and smallest in the state, is fighting for its life.
Faced with a huge budget deficit and a successful taxpayers' revolt, Morrisville has swallowed its pride and made overtures to merge with the Pennsbury School District - its more prosperous neighbor on the Delaware River in Bucks County.
But Pennsbury has shown little sign of embracing the 1,100 students of Morrisville, and no law can force it to do so.
"Morrisville was given the choice back in the 1960s to merge with us and they chose not to," said Thomas Romett, Pennsbury's assistant superintendent of business and personnel. "They wanted to remain small and independent, and now they're going to pay a very expensive price for that smallness."
The little district has been paying for years. Since 1980, enrollment has shrunk by 25 percent, while the borough's tax base has eroded with the demise of several major industries and the loss of hundreds of jobs. And though its tax rate has climbed to one of the highest in Bucks County, assessed property values have remained virtually stagnant.
Part 2. Check the link for the full article.
"We have six kids in Calculus I, but if you get rid of calculus what does that mean?" McDowelle said. "It means we'll never have a student from Morrisville who will be an engineer or a doctor. To me, it means that you've made a career decision for those kids, and you don't have the right to do that. If you do that, then you've crippled those kids. And at that point, you should merge."
In the early 1960s, when the state consolidated its more than 2,000 school districts into 501, Morrisville chose to remain independent. For the most part, according to teachers and parents, the choice has been a good one.
Like many others, Belledin suspects that the Pennsbury School District looks down on its less-affluent neighbor on the Delaware.
"We have these 'lower-class' kids," said one Morrisville school board member who asked not to be identified. "There's snobbery involved, and there's no other way of saying it."
"We're caught in a very tough little trap," said Jack Buckman, who won election to the Morrisville school board in December as an opponent of the tax.
"The state implies that when you get below 1,100 students, you shouldn't even have a school district," he said. "But the problem is also political. If we merge with Pennsbury, we won't have a lot of say over the kind of school system we want to run."
Good stuff.
Keep it coming!
Collections
Looking Back On Volatile Tenure John Warenda Jr. Was President Six Of The Eight Years He Served On The Morrisville School Board. They Weren't Peaceful Years.
December 19, 1991|By Michelle Rizzo, Special to The Inquirer
There were hundreds of residents and about a dozen print and television reporters in the crowd, but John Warenda Jr. didn't let that stop him.
A dissenter in the audience had implied that Warenda, president of the Morrisville school board, had something personal to gain by the ratification of a new teachers' contract.
"The only thing I'm getting out of this," snapped Warenda, "is the satisfaction of calling you a jerk."
The incident, which occurred at a meeting in March 1990 at the culmination of a long teachers' strike, was vintage Warenda. In his eight years on the board, which ended Dec. 2, he rarely conducted a business-as-usual meeting or let a careless statement go unchallenged.
"The reactions you saw were genuine," Warenda, 40, said in an interview at his law office last week. "It wasn't just good theater. I was angry at people from time to time. . . . I didn't give up my rights as a citizen just because I got elected to public office.
"If there are people who weren't going to like me, I wasn't going to try and win them over beyond a certain point."
As president for six of his eight years on the board - longer than any predecessor - Warenda oversaw some of the most profound upheavals the history of the district.
A tiny district with only 1,100 students and about 80 teachers, Morrisville grabbed an inordinate share of headlines during Warenda's years on the board. In the high-flying '80s, when other districts were adding or renovating classrooms and stuffing them with computers and other educational aids, Morrisville was cutting back staff and closing school buildings. Some of the most furiously debated board decisions include:
* A 1 percent earned-income tax that was implemented in the spring of 1987 and repealed a year later after sparking outrage among residents. The powerful Morrisville Taxpayers Association accused Warenda of wanting to institute a ''nuisance tax."
* The 1990 teachers' contract, which will have cost the taxpayers an additional $1.7 million by the time it expires in 1993.
* Unsuccessful legal action to force the neighboring larger, richer Pennsbury School District, to merge with - and in effect absorb - Morrisville.
A champion of tax reform, Warenda fervently advocates funding the schools through an earned-income tax rather than property taxes.
"It's more in accordance with people's ability to pay," he said last week. "But the mood of the public and the electorate is against change."
An articulate, sometimes eloquent speaker, Warenda had no fear of publicly dismissing his political enemies as "the lunatic fringe," or "small-caliber fools." It was an attitude he said he reached after trying hard to win them over. "It turned out that if you weren't in agreement with some of these people, then there was no conciliation in their souls."
He worried little about tape recorders, cameras or his own image: Often he would rub his eyes and appear obviously bored or preoccupied. At one meeting he left his chair at the front of the room and sat in the audience, saying he ''always wanted to see what it was like from this perspective." He remained there for the rest of the meeting.
Now with the recession crippling school districts nationwide, Morrisville faces its greatest threat to survival. Administrators predict a potential $2 million shortfall next year - a deficit that Superintendent C. Van Cain says will force draconian cutbacks in personnel, extra curricular activities and supplies.
In what many interpret as an angry backlash against Warenda and his board, Morrisville voters in November placed five new anti-tax members on the board to be headed by new president Jim Murray.
To Warenda, blaming Morrisville's poor fiscal situtation on him and his old board "is the argument of people scurrying about covering their you-know- whats. Frankly, they're busy at work passing the buck. Why can't I blame my problems on what the board did in 1976? Simple, because it isn't their fault. You can't pass the buck backwards . . . The promise of a simple answer is something that can't be realized."
In September 1990, Warenda stepped down as president and served as vice president for the remainder of his term. He decided not to run again and his name was not on the November ballot.
Warenda said his motivation for spending almost 10 years at what he described as "the center of the bull's-eye" was his children: John, 14, Jason, 11 and Kate, 4.
And there was also, he said, a late-'60s conviction that serving a community and teaching its children "is one of the most important things we can do for society." Farmers and educators, he said "top the list of necessary workers."
As for the new board, he said, "Why not let someone else see if they can do any better? Maybe they'll succeed. I doubt it.
"But who knows? Maybe something they'll do will work. And if it does, I'll even help them. I do have a vested personal interest, my children count, my community counts, my business counts, my home counts."
District Eyes Privatizing Precedent Morrisville Prepares To Defend Replacing A Union With Contract Workers.
November 28, 1995|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
At a recent meeting, school board member Jim Murray read an article from the Wall Street Journal that explained a state Supreme Court decision in Wilkinsburg, Pa., where the school district has been using a private company to run one of its elementary schools.
Murray, other board members and the board solicitor believe that information from the article will bolster their fight to keep 16 union secretaries and custodial workers off Morrisville's payroll.
"The state Supreme Court is showing its favor to contracting out," Murray said. "It's just for reasons like this that we have continued to appeal" a state agency's ruling to reinstate the workers.
Board member Marlys Mihok, who was defeated in the election, agreed.
"This is a very important decision for the district," she said. "It proves the district's position."
In 1993, the Morrisville board fired the workers, all members of the Morrisville Educational Support Personnel Association (MESPA), and replaced them with contract workers. Beforehand, the board had been negotiating with MESPA and had asked for a four-year deal that included a 20 percent rollback in salaries, then a 5 percent raise each year. The board said it had reached an impasse, and MESPA officials said they were locked out.
After the firing, MESPA appealed to the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board, which said the district had not bargained in good faith. The school board appealed that ruling, and a Bucks County judge upheld the decision. Now, the suit is in state appellate court.
In Wilkinsburg, which is on the outskirts of Pittsburgh, the school board decided in January to hire a private company, Alternative Public Schools Inc. of Nashville, to run Turner Elementary School. Twenty teachers of the 138- member staff were replaced in the change and the school now has a longer day and a longer year, said Charlie Steele, the attorney who argued for the district in the case. He estimated that the district saved a third of its annual costs by subcontracting.
Ralf Gilbert, Morrisville school board solicitor, said he planned to cite the Wilkinsburg case in his arguments in state court in the MESPA issue.
"The Wilkinsburg decision has to do with subcontracting teaching services, which is even a further step than subcontracting custodial or secretarial services," Gilbert said. "The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has upheld that under the facts of the case that Wilkinsburg can do that."
(Page 2 of 2)
Gilbert said Wilkinsburg bolstered his case because "it shows the appellate courts are tending to decide more toward approving subcontracting as appropriate under certain facts."
MESPA attorney Lynne Wilson, a lawyer for the Pennsylvania State Education Association, disagreed. In her opinion, the state Supreme Court decided the Wilkinsburg case on a procedural matter, not on the merits of privatization - reducing its relevance as a precedent for the Morrisville district.
"When the actual issues of privatization get before the state Supreme Court, then it might have an effect on MESPA," Wilson said. "Even if you assume the worst - let's assume that the state Supreme Court says privatization is legal - that still doesn't mean a district can ignore its bargaining obligation."
Steele, the attorney for the Wilkinsburg district, who has worked with Morrisville on other legal issues, said that since the state Labor Relations Board ruled against Morrisville, "they're dead."
"It's very unusual for the (Labor Relations Board) to be overturned by the court," Steele said.
Steele said he did not think the Wilkinsburg decision would have any impact on MESPA.
"Districts have a long-standing right to contract out services" such as those provided by secretaries and custodians, Steele said. MESPA "alleges that the district didn't do it right. Wilkinsburg is new law that extends that right to teachers and professional staff."
How did that MESPA lockout work out?
"Board member Marlys Mihok, who was defeated in the election, agreed."
You made my day!
Wow! What a goldmine of articles. Where did you find them?
Also interesting to see that it has been the same ol' same ol' since the 80's.
"blaming Morrisville's poor fiscal situtation on him and his old board "is the argument of people scurrying about covering their you-know- whats. Frankly, they're busy at work passing the buck. Why can't I blame my problems on what the board did in 1976? Simple, because it isn't their fault. You can't pass the buck backwards . . . The promise of a simple answer is something that can't be realized."
Wow, what a perfect summation of politics in the ville, and perhaps these are a microcosm of our current national political situation. As much as I may have disliked W as a president, to continue to simply blame all the problems of today on that administration smacks of a desperate attempt by the current leadership to avoid taking responsibility and doing something to effect the change that is needed. Micro-Macro, and it all looks very similar.
I like the Marlys quote. She's as sweet as ever. The full article is at the link
http://articles.philly.com/1995-11-09/news/25683033_1_board-members-newcomer-candidates-school-board
Morrisville 'Parent' Team Wins
November 09, 1995|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Winning may have been the easy part for the self-described "parent platform" as it snatched three school board seats from incumbents.
Now everyone just has to get along on the board, where the three Democratic newcomers - Ken Rowan, Ken Junkins and Tina Fitzpatrick - will join six incumbents after months of nasty campaigning. Incumbents Marlys Mihok and Marvin Dupree were ousted.
Mihok said that she was disappointed by the results, saying, "The citizens of Morrisville believed the lies of the three new board members." She said that she recognized there would be a problem with overcoming the divisiveness of the campaign and that she doubted newcomers would be able to do that.
"In the future, I hope to see some integrity of the newcomers," she said. ''Integrity is a word they need to seriously investigate and definitely a goal they should strive toward. Then I'll be behind them 100 percent."
Did anyone else notice how it seems everyone lies to Marlys?
She was lying then too.
http://articles.philly.com/1992-03-15/news/26018282_1_summer-school-elective-classes-secondary-school-program
District May Drop 25 Electives At High School To Trim Costs
March 15, 1992|By Lisa L. Colangelo, SPECIAL TO THE INQUIRER
In an effort to tighten its fiscal belt and reorganize services in its high school, the Morrisville School District is considering a plan to eliminate 25 elective classes.
"We've organized a secondary school program to save money and do what we're doing better," said Superintendent Cornelius Van Cain.
The Morrisville school board got its first look at the proposed program of studies at Wednesday's meeting.
The board is considering several options to ease financial woes in the district. The plans may include closing an elementary school or increasing class size. About 10 staff positions in the high school are expected to be eliminated by next year.
Cain said the program of studies for the high school was usually approved earlier in the school year, but district officials had waited for the recommendations of the reorganization task force before they drafted a plan. Cain said they wanted to make sure the program fit into the future structure of the Morrisville schools.
Several industrial arts classes, such as basic metalworking-handtools, basic woodworking-machines, creative drafting and photography, will be eliminated. Driver education, instrumental music and band will not be offered during school hours.
Cain said band practice would be continued as an after-school activity. He noted that industrial arts as a whole would not be discontinued, only several of its electives.
The only core academic classes that will be eliminated are Algebra I-A and Algebra I-B, both remedial courses. Those courses were designed for students who had difficulty with the regular algebra program.
"We had several different levels of a beginning math class," Cain told the board. "We don't have the staff to do it. There's a limit to what we can offer."
Cain said the high school would also take an interdisciplinary approach to teaching English, social studies, math and science. For example, students who are learning about the Civil War in their social studies class may read related books, such as The Red Badge of Courage, in their English classes.
As part of a decision made four years ago, the school has phased out German classes from its curriculum. French and Spanish will be the only foreign languages offered to high school students.
Summer school will also be required under the new program. Students who fail a required course during the school year will be mandated to attend summer school, and will not be allowed to make up the class during the regular school year.
Cain said he hoped the board would approve the program of studies at its regular meeting March 25.
http://articles.philly.com/1989-05-14/news/26110574_1_elementary-schools-school-board-parental-involvement
Morrisville Picks Superintendent, Abandons Plan To Shut A School
May 14, 1989|By Kimberly J. McLarin, Inquirer Staff Writer
It took only two weeks for the Morrisville School District to find a successor for Superintendent James McDowelle. Now it must find a replacement for the replacement.
The school board voted unanimously Wednesday to appoint Assistant Superintendent C. Van Cain to the district's top administrative post. Board president John Warenda Jr. said Cain was one of two candidates considered for the job. The other was Assistant Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg .
"This is tough duty," Warenda said of the Morrisville district, which is in the middle of a financial crisis and looking at a possible merger. "It's not so much leaving Morrisville, as it is being attracted to a better gig," he said, referring to the resignations of McDowelle and Kimmelman.
The board tabled action on board member John Buckman's proposal to slash the proposed $8.4 million budget by 10 percent, to reduce a proposed 43-mill tax hike.
"Be serious," board member Roy Snare said in response to Buckman's proposal. "You want to provide an education here or don't you?"
Googler said...
District May Drop 25 Electives At High School To Trim Costs
Thank you! These are great articles. Isn't it amazing how following the cuts, the inferior level of education provided becomes the new normal and we chip away more and more.
"Be serious. You want to provide an education here or don't you?"
"For example, students who are learning about the Civil War in their social studies class may read related books, such as The Red Badge of Courage, in their English classes."
Read "Ball Four" by Jim Bouton and you can cover English and baseball at the same time.
You're welcome.
Keep those 80's and 90's articles coming - I love learning more about our "leadreship" recycling program!
The Tax That Will Not Die Morrisville Gets 2-year-old Bills
June 21, 1990|By Michelle Rizzo, Special to The Inquirer
When Marlys Mihok of Morrisville checked her mail 10 days ago, she found an ominous letter. So did a lot of other borough residents.
It was a bill demanding payment and late charges for an income tax that was enacted briefly and abolished two years ago. The letter warned Mihok that if she did not respond within 10 days she would have to pay a $500 fine - or face jail.
The letters came from the Central Tax Bureau, or CENTAX, a private tax- collection agency in Castle Shannon near Pittsburgh.
Rather than raise the real estate tax for the 1987-1988 school year, the Morrisville school board enacted a 1 percent income tax. CENTAX was hired to collect the tax. The tax raised a furor and was not continued into the next year.
Mihok made initial quarterly payments, she said, but held back from paying the last because her husband's Social Security number was incorrect on the bill.
"I certainly intended to pay it," said Mihok, who was the president last year of the Morrisville Taxpayer Association, "but I just wanted to make sure it would be credited to the proper account."
Since receiving the bill in April 1988, Mihok said, she had tried in vain to have CENTAX fix the mistake, once even writing the company in calligraphy.
"I feel a little put out, especially when I put in time to write a letter and make phone calls," she said. "My time is gold. . . . On top of that, they don't even have a toll-free number."
Now, she said, CENTAX is asking for several months' worth of late charges at a rate of 1 percent of the bill's total.
CENTAX vice president Robert Villella said there was no notice between this month's letters and the April 1988 billing because the firm had to await the Commonwealth Personal Income Tax Register, a list of taxpayers compiled by the state Department of Community Affairs.
"Many people are under the assumption that because the tax was repealed that they don't have to pay it, but they are obligated to meet that debt," he said.
Though Villella said the list was put out every 18 months, Herb Zaring of Community Affairs said Wednesday it was published yearly. The last one was issued last Junem and another will come out in about two weeks.
The school board did not anticipate how furious residents would be with the tax, board President John J. Warenda Jr. said Monday.
After the first billing in April 1987, about 1,000 residents attended a board meeting to protest the tax. Some even ripped the bill up in front of the nine board members.
(Page 2 of 2)
Collecting the tax, which school officials estimated would raise $800,000, was made even more difficult by a series of mistakes.
With much of the expected revenue still uncollected, the board in January asked its solicitor, John Donohue, to initiate legal action against the firm for not having completed the job. The suit, Donohue said Monday, is being held in abeyance now that the company is pursuing the old taxes.
Some residents speculated that the suit had triggered CENTAX's barrage of delinquency notices.
Board member Paul Bunting received one, though he did not live in the borough when the tax was in force. He said he had sent the form back, figuring that would satisfy the demand to "respond within 10 days."
Bob Harrison said he had never heard of CENTAX until he received a delinquent notice, without ever having received a bill. "There's no explanation as to why I never received a bill in the first place," he said. ''It just says you owe the money, here's how much you owe, pay the bill or you're in trouble."
Charlie Maira said he had been asked to pay more than $300. He asked CENTAX whether he could pay in two or three installments and was told that he had to submit the entire fee or a lien would be put on his house. "Even the IRS will accept payments - why in the world won't CENTAX?" he asked.
If mistakes were made, Villella said, those involved should call the firm. ''Every effort would be made to resolve their problem," he said. "If they want to pay off $500 in $5-a-month installments, then obviously we're not going to go along with that."
The school board has asked residents who are having problems with their CENTAX bill to call the business office at 736-2681.
Is *leadreship" recycling program* the politically correct term for the compost pile of suck Morrisville has had to deal with for all these decades?
Morrisville School Race Features 5 Challengers
April 23, 1995|By Andrew Metz, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Call it the parent platform.
Five parents, all political newcomers and all fiercely committed to education, are challenging five incumbent school board members in the primary elections next month.
The challengers - Mary Singleton, Kenneth Rowan, Tina Fitzpatrick, Kenneth Junkins and Ronald Shomo - although not formally campaigning together, say the current nine-member board is out of touch with students and not pushing hard enough for educational enhancement. They question several of the board's recent decisions, particularly the move in November to remove Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye from a high school English class.
"It's time for parents to be a part of the decision process," said Singleton, 40, who has four children, including a 19-year-old daughter who was a single mother when she dropped out of the Morrisville Middle-Senior High School two years ago. Singleton said she hoped to bring a heightened awareness of minority issues to the board if elected.
"The school board that is in place right now is very much out of touch with what is going on," said Shomo, 35, a chemist, who said he disagreed with pulling Morrison's book. "They are burying their heads in the sand if they think that stuff is going to go away."
The incumbent board members are reluctant to talk about the book decision, which will be revisited on Wednesday night, but many still support the move and say its relevance has been exaggerated. They say their real work has just begun.
"It is an absurd issue that has nothing to do with the way we run the school district," said incumbent James Murray. Murray, 69, is a Morrisville High School graduate and former school football star. "What we have already done is put the district on a sound financial basis," he said. "We are now trying to focus on improving education."
Historically, the school board, which governs the 1,100-student district, has been preoccupied with keeping fiscal crisis at bay. A stagnant tax base has contributed to tax increases, cutbacks and a decrepit physical plant. Even as the district has fought recently to reduce taxes and upgrade its educational program - textbooks have been updated, computers purchased - some areas have suffered. Last year, an elementary school was closed, and theater funds were slashed.
(Page 2 of 2)
"This term that we are completing was tough, we had to make a lot of hard decisions," said Board President Edward Nelson, 67, a vocal advocate for reducing taxes. He sat on the board in the 1970s and is running for reelection. "We've made the district financially stable; now we'd like to see the fruits of our labor. Now we can look at the educational program."
Besides Nelson and Murray, board members Randall Kenner, Marvin Dupree and Marlys Mihok are running for reelection in the May 16 primary. In Morrisville, one of the county's smallest districts, candidates cross-file as both Republicans and Democrats.
Although all the candidates say education is a top priority, the challengers contend they are better equipped to push this agenda - they all have children in the Morrisville schools. "The current board is primarily concerned with just saving money," said Junkins, 38, who has four school-age children and an infant. "I think the students are suffering because of it. I want to be an advocate of the students."
Morrisville Board Oks Closing Elementary School Despite Criticism The Closing Trimmed Nearly $300,000 From The 1994-95 Budget. Some Board Members And Many Parents Opposed The Decision. Some Are Not Ready To Give Up.
June 23, 1994|By Christine Schiavo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
School board president Edward Nelson knew that closing Manor Park Elementary School would save the district desperately needed dollars.
He voted against the closing anyway.
"Future cost savings must come from new sources of income, not by cutting any more programs," Nelson said before the June 16 vote.
Parents of Manor Park children stood and applauded Nelson for his stand.
But only two of his fellow board members agreed.
Viewing the closure as a necessary business decision, board member Raymond Dominski said, "To help us survive, we, too, may have to shut down a plant and stabilize operations."
Dominski voted for closure with Marvin Dupree Jr., Edward Evans, Paul Bunting, James Murray and Stephen Worob.
"None of us, even those voting to close Manor Park and reorganize the district, really wants to close any school," Murray said.
But he said the closure and the $295,000 savings that go with it "would favorably affect future school budgets."
To Manor Park parents, the saving isn't worth the price.
Their children now will walk from their southeastern Morrisville neighborhood, across town and busy streets, to M.R. Reiter Elementary School.
Eileen Dreisbach, parent of a Manor Park third grader, led the parents' fight to keep the school open.
Ten years ago, when her two sons were at Manor Park, Dreisbach and other parents successfully defeated a campaign to close the school.
Even as Manor Park's last day of classes looms - Monday - Dreisbach is not ready to give up the fight.
"All we can do is plead with (the board) to reverse the decision," she said.
Dreisbach agrees with Nelson that closing the school will not solve the long-term problem, just as closing the Capitol View Elementary School in 1981 did not end the district's budget woes. She favors pursuing a merger with the Pennsbury School District as a more permanent solution.
"We would keep our neighborhood schools open then," Dreisbach said.
Morrisville has initiated merger discussions with Pennsbury in the past.
The Pennsbury school board has never been receptive to the idea.
Morrisville board member Frank McCarthy, who voted to keep Manor Park open, said Morrisville cannot stake the district's viability on a possible merger.
"We can't dream that the cavalry's coming, that Pennsbury will welcome us with open arms," he said.
Nelson noted that the Manor Park neighborhood is near the borough's industrial zone, the area most likely to attract any new or expanding business development.
"If this is where the future (tax) ratables would be, I think we should let Manor Park have their school," he said.
With no big business prospects expected any time soon to beef up the borough's tax base, the school board opted for the obvious solution - budget cuts.
To keep school taxes from rising, the board surpassed its own expectations by cutting enough out of the 1994-95 budget to reduce taxes by 1 mill.
The board passed a $9.7 million budget. That will mean a property tax bill of $1,782, a savings of $4 over 1993-94, for homeowners whose homes are assessed at $4,000, the township average.
The board boosted revenues by shifting nearly $84,000 from the fund balance to the general fund.
It also agreed to sell the old Capitol View Elementary School for $20,000 to John and Deborah Haveson, who plan to run a day-care center there.
On a completely unrelated note: Sherwood Schwartz, who created “Gilligan’s Island” and “The Brady Bunch,” two of the most affectionately ridiculed and enduring television sitcoms of the 1960s and ’70s, died on Tuesday in Los Angeles. He was 94.
Another Morrisville School Board Member Announces Resignation He Is The Third To Step Down In Three Months. The Changes Have Some Parents Worried.
September 06, 1992|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
It's not even an election year, but the Morrisville Board of Education will have at least three new members before 1992 ends.
Alfred A. Radosti resigned in July, Wayne Almond resigned late last month, and Thomas Coolbaugh announced he would resign this month.
The board went through three votes before it reached a majority and replaced Radosti with Stephen Worob. Radosti left the board for personal reasons and because of time conflicts with his job as a Lower Makefield police officer.
Almond, who has served on the board for almost nine years and was elected for two consecutive terms, stepped down for personal and health reasons.
"My family, my friends and my physician have all told me to reduce the stress in my life," Almond said. "It's time to take a little break."
Coolbaugh is moving out of Morrisville because of a transfer in his position at Mobil Oil Co.
The changes have some parents worried. Almond and Coolbaugh frequently disagreed with the board majority and sided with parents on several educational and financial issues.
The financially conservative majority managed to hold the line on taxes with the 1992-93 school budget. But the small school district was hit with personnel cuts, including a loss of 18 teaching positions.
Board members contend the program that served the 1,100-student district was not efficient. But some parents worry about the quality of the downsized educational system.
Almond, who teaches at Abraham Lincoln High School in Northeast Philadelphia, urged parents to keep attending meetings and stay involved.
In his resignation letter, Almond asked the board to replace him with someone who shared his ideology. He said that was the criteria the board majority used when it replaced Radosti with Worob.
"I feel they should honor his request," said parent Suzanna Show. "It's very important that they (Almond and Coolbaugh) are replaced with people who have children in this district."
Potential candidates for the seat had until Friday to submit their resumes to the district. The board is expected to fill the seat this month.
"We will look at the applications and hold interviews to decide who is the best person for the job," said Board President James Murray.
The terms of all three members expire in 1993. Their appointed replacements will have to participate in next spring's primary if they want to stay on the board.
Radosti, Worob, Mihok, Buckman, Dreisbach......
Cripes, this is Gilligan's Island!!!
Does anybody know how to make a radio out of coconuts????
R.I.P. Sherwood Schwartz, millions owe their childhoods to you.
"Historically, the school board, which governs the 1,100-student district, has been preoccupied with keeping fiscal crisis at bay. A stagnant tax base has contributed to tax increases, cutbacks and a decrepit physical plant."
S.O.C. creeps dithered while Rome burned.
M.R. Reiter blew up and the other buildings rotted in the 1980s and 90s while S.O.C. style School Boards jerked around banning books, illegally firing and locking out MESPA workers, and chipping away at curriculum and activities.
Just wondering, do you think Ferrara, D'Angelo, & other Administrators know any of this history about the people who hired them?
Do you think they would behave differently if they lived here in Morrisville and weren't on the payroll?
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1499658/
Morrisville School Board Seeks Residents' Input A Questionnaire Will Poll Taxpayers On School Programs They Would Like Continued Or Cut.
November 11, 1993|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
The school board, tired of being hammered by critics, is reaching out to the public to help plan the 1994-95 school budget.
A questionnaire asking taxpayers what types of programs they would like to see continued or cut in the Morrisville schools has been sent out by the district.
It may be a sign of tough times ahead.
Some of the options include reducing or eliminating extracurricular activities and sports, closing schools and eliminating kindergarten.
When the board has cut staff and activities in the past, it has been criticized by angry parents, students and teachers.
"I felt we weren't really getting a broad community response," said board President James Murray.
"There is a small, organized opposition to the board who come to the meetings. But when I meet people on the street, they tell me we are doing a great job."
Murray and the majority of the board were elected in 1991 on an anti-tax platform. The board managed to hold the line on taxes in 1992, but had to raise them by 55.45 mills this year.
That increase translated into $221.80 in additional taxes for a property owner with an average borough assessment of $4,000.
The financially strapped district serves 1,100 students. Board members have blamed their predicament on high teacher salaries, state mandates and a shrinking borough tax base.
Since 1992, the board has made several cuts, including teachers and other staff. Most recently, the district replaced some secretaries and custodians with independent contractors.
"Everything that can be cut has already been cut," said Maureen McCreadie, who has two sons in the district.
"There are so few resources in Morrisville, both economic and human, it seems particularly important now to work hard together and find ways to generate revenues."
McCreadie said the district should aggressively pursue grants, state aid and other financial sources. She pointed out that many of the activity reductions only save a small amount.
For example, the board recently cut the drama program - which included the annual high school play - for a savings of $825.
Another question on the survey asked taxpayers how they feel about a 1 percent earned-income tax and leaves room for other suggestions. But Murray said the options were based on suggestions made by residents to school board members.
He said the board will compile the answers and consider the suggestions when it reviews the budget in the spring.
The surveys, which were mailed out with stamped, self-addressed envelopes, are due back by Monday.
The board a year ago agreed to buy equipment for a new computer center, and Murray said it will have to look this year at including money in the budget for maintenance work that has been postponed for years.
Cuts may have to be made to afford that expense.
"We cannot simply keep raising taxes ad infinitum," he said.
Judge To Break Deadlock Over Seat The Morrisville School Board Split On Two Candidates To Fill A Vacancy. A Ruling Is Expected Friday.
March 05, 1996|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Members of the Morrisville school board hoped to resolve at least some of their differences by appearing before a Bucks County Court judge yesterday.
When board member Jim Murray resigned several months ago, two candidates emerged as possible replacements, but the board split, 4-4, on whether Ron Schomo or former member Marvin Dupree should take the seat. Now, Judge Cynthia Weaver will choose.
In a two-hour session, Weaver heard arguments for both candidates. She said she expected to reach a decision by Friday. Under state law, if a school board or municipal government cannot decide on a board member, it can submit the matter to the courts.
``I would say this is a very difficult decision for me,'' Weaver said. ``I'd like to appoint both of you to the school board. . . . I hope that no matter what the result, both of you will continue your involvement with the school and the community because you both have much to give.''
Dupree said he was the best candidate because of his board experience and his financial background as a state auditor. Dupree was a board member from 1992 to 1995 but lost in November by 25 votes.
``My goals for the school district have been the same for three years,'' Dupree said. ``I believe there is an attitude toward Morrisville as a second-rate school district and that the school taxes are too high.''
Schomo said he was the better choice, citing his technical background in chemistry and financial skills learned from managing the $250,000 budget at the lab he works for in Princeton, N.J. He also pointed to his grant-writing efforts and work with the Morrisville Brain Trust, which aims to serve as a bridge between the business community and the schools. He lost in the May primary by six votes.
``We need to look at alternative ways to run the school district,'' Schomo said. ``I've gotten my company to donate about 12 printers to the school that otherwise would have wound up in the Dumpster.''
Acting as Dupree's attorney, his wife, Anita, brought four witnesses to testify in his behalf.
Murray, whose seat the two are vying for, said that Dupree had financial acumen and was always ``the point man on the numbers.''
Marlys Mihok, another former board member who was defeated in November, said Dupree was ``very objective, always fair, and willing to listen to other people's points of view.''
Schomo and his attorney, David Sander, also brought four witnesses.
Board member Tina Fitzpatrick said Schomo was ``very focused . . . he'll look at something, and he's dogged about figuring it out.''
Constance Beadle, a longtime friend and neighbor, said Schomo's best attribute was ``clearly intelligence. He has a high level of education, and he's very experienced with money.''
Besides Fitzpatrick, Schomo is backed by board members Paul Nestor, Ken Rowan and Ken Junkins. Dupree is backed by Frank McCarthy, Paul Bunting, Steve Worob and Ed Nelson.
Proposal To Close School Hits Opposition Morrisville Wants To Cut Its Tax Rate. Closing Manor Park Elementary Would Trim 9 Mills.
March 20, 1994|By Christine Schiavo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
The school board didn't expect applause when it announced the possible closing of a neighborhood elementary school.
And they certainly didn't get it.
A packed and opposing house of nearly 200 greeted the board Wednesday at a public hearing to discuss the possible closing of Manor Park Elementary School.
Despite the numbers, only six people testified. All six were opposed to the plan, and all left the microphone amid cheers from the audience.
At issue: the proposed closing of Manor Park Elementary School on the southeast side of Morrisville. The closing would slash 9 mills, or $135,000,
from the annual budget. The district has the highest tax millage rate in the county.
"We'll do everything we can to keep the doors open," said Edward Nelson, school board president. But, he added, "We have to keep taxes down."
Eileen Driesback presented to the board a petition signed by 409 people opposed to the closing. The board will vote on the 1994-95 operating budget in June.
"I'd rather pay higher taxes," said Patricia Manning, parent of a Manor Park student. "Raise them. You've got them sky-high already."
When the last budget was approved in June, Morrisville residents were socked with a 55.45 mill increase for the district. The 446.40 millage rate generated $6.6 million for the district's current budget, which represents nearly 70 percent of the total $9.6 million district budget. The situation has increased school tax bills to more than $2,000 for taxpayers owning homes assessed at the borough average of $4,500.
Nelson said the district's state subsidy has remained about $2 million for the last 20 years. Although that subsidy financed 50 percent of the district's budget in the 1970s, it finances only 20 percent now.
Nelson added that while Morrisville's population base has remained steady at about 10,000 people, its industrial base has eroded over the last 10 years. That has shifted the brunt of the tax burden to residential property owners.
Built in the mid-1970s to replace a school that burned down, Manor Park is the newest of Morrisville's three elementary schools. It has 168 students in grades kindergarten to six. Although the enrollment is similar to that of Grandview and M.R. Reiter Elementary Schools, Manor Park doesn't have the capacity to handle more students. But M.R. Reiter, which is on the other side of town, has plenty of space.
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"We don't want to ever be in a position where we couldn't grow at a school," said Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg. "Manor Park is a lovely school. The school board would not be looking at closing it for anything but
financial reasons."
What makes the possibility so distressing for Manor Park parents is the walk their children would have to make to M.R. Reiter. Because the district's 1,100 students live within walking distance of their schools, only special- education students are transported by bus.
Children walking from their Manor Park neighborhood to M.R. Reiter would have to cross the borough's three busiest streets - Route 1, Bridge Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. One parent complained that her daughter would have to pass a go-go bar along the way.
Nelson noted that Morrisville has twice the room it needs to educate students in its four schools. He said Morrisville has the space that neighboring Pennsbury needs. But whether a merger is in the future remains uncertain.
"I think we're continually open for negotiations with Pennsbury," Nelson said. "Whether a merger will ever happen, I don't know."
Morrisville Challengers' Triumph Has 'Energized' School Campaign
May 21, 1995|By Andrew Metz, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
James A. Murray was sour.
"I am very dissatisfied with the vote," the 69-year-old school board vice president said after Tuesday's primary election for five open seats on the board. "The people who thought we were doing a good job apparently sat home."
Murray and three incumbent board members were edged off the coveted Democratic ticket Tuesday by four parents turned school activists.
Five incumbent Democrats squared off against five feisty Democratic challengers in the primary. All the candidates cross-filed. With the exception of incumbent Randall Kenner, who came in fourth on the Democratic side, the challengers carried the day.
Tina Fitzpatrick, 36; Mary Singleton, 40; Kenneth G. Rowan, 37; and Kenneth D. Junkins, 38, won Democratic nominations. Board president Edward F. Nelson, 67, was the top Republican vote-getter, trailed by incumbents Marlys Mihok, 42; Marvin Dupree Jr., 40; and Murray.
One challenger, Tina Fitzpatrick, the Democratic front-runner, is assured a place on the nine-member board - she took nominations on both the Democratic and Republican sides.
"I'm on the board. It's very exciting," the mother of three said after the primary. Throughout the campaign, Fitzpatrick and the other challengers pitted themselves as young parents deeply committed to education. They questioned the current board's recent decisions, particularly its move to pull Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye from the high school curriculum, and they cast the board as out of touch with students.
"It is a real shot in the arm for parents," said Fitzpatrick, 37. "This is parents uniting, the community uniting for our future."
The Morrisville school board has grappled with tough financial issues in the last several years. A stagnant tax base due to lost industry has led to high taxes, an ailing physical plant, cutbacks and closures. This year, the board is looking at its first major construction project in more than a decade - a computer and library center for the M.R. Reiter Elementary School - and it is proposing a tax cut.
Board members say the work on enhancing education has just begun.
"There is more work that needs to be done . . . quality of education is first and foremost," said Dupree, 40. He said that low voter turnout had hurt the incumbents, who lost by a slim margin. But, he said, he believed more voters would come out in support of the board, now on the Republican ticket, in the November general election.
The incumbents' name recognition and serious campaigning in the coming months may help them retain their seats in November. But Tuesday's election has set the stage for an Election Day fight.
"We have months to actively campaign," Fitzpatrick said. "This community is energized."
Unseated School Board Member Appointed In Morrisville The Court's Naming Of Marvin A. Dupree To The Ninth Post Keeps Fiscal Conservatives In Power.
March 11, 1996|By Russell Gold, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
The court appointment of a ninth member to the Morrisville school board has quieted the surging strength of a coalition of political novices who ran on a ``parents' platform'' in November and unseated three incumbents.
Marvin A. Dupree Jr., a former board member and one of the unseated incumbents, was appointed to the board Friday by Bucks County Court of Common Pleas Judge Cynthia Weaver.
Dupree's appointment keeps five votes in the hands of a fiscally cautious majority that intends to control taxes, which at 410 mills are the highest of any school district in the county.
Ron Schomo, the candidate of the parents' platform, had argued that innovative alliances with businesses and the aggressive pursuit of grants could help the school district improve without overtaxing the residents. He could not be reached for comment after the court decision.
The school board had asked the court to decide between Schomo and Dupree after deadlocking twice and failing to reach a compromise. The opening was created in December when James Murray resigned just weeks after winning a tough reelection campaign. Murray had been aligned with the fiscally cautious incumbents. Dupree will serve through December 1997, according to the court order.
``We are continuing to challenge and improve the educational program in Morrisville School District and at the same time make it an education that is affordable to the community at large,'' Dupree said Friday.
Board member Paul Bunting cheered Dupree's appointment, noting his experience as an auditor.
The three board members who were elected on the parents' platform and their allies, Bunting said, ``don't have regard for cost. They seem to have an attitude of spare no expense, education at whatever cost.''
Tina Fitzpatrick, a novice board member who ran on the parents' platform and received the most votes in November, said Schomo had proved himself to be an enterprising and committed member of the community.
``Ron really is someone who thinks out of the box,'' Fitzpatrick said. ``A lot of people look at computers that cost $2,000 a piece and say we can't afford them. Ron looks at the computers and says let's find a way to get them. Let's find a grant.''
Dupree said that he was impressed with Schomo's commitment to education in Morrisville, and that he hoped Schomo would continue his involvement.
District Floats 58-mill Tax Increase The Morrisville School Board Anticipates More Spending On Staff And Classroom Materials.
April 19, 1996|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Taxpayers in this tiny school district were overjoyed to see a whopping tax cut last year that hacked more than $140 off the average bill.
It appears that the party could be over.
Wednesday night, the school board unanimously approved a preliminary $11 million 1996-97 budget that contains a whopping 58-mill tax increase - a figure that would add more than $230 to the average tax bill, for a total of $1,872. That figure may not last long if board members such as Marvin Dupree have their way.
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``My goal is no increase,'' said Dupree, who peppered much of the three-hour meeting with pointed questions to administration officials. ``I intend to try to get the millage increase down to zero. With the highest millage in the county, we can't afford not to.''
Board members and district officials stressed that the numbers were preliminary - there will be four more budget meetings to hammer out details, and the final budget plan does not need to be passed until the end of June. The next budget meeting will be at 7 p.m. May 1.
The preliminary budget includes increased spending for books and materials, boosts to technology programs, and more part-time teachers and aides.
No money is allocated for construction or renovations.
District Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg said the biggest reasons for the millage increase were teachers' salary increases written into the final year of their contract, accounting for an additional 16 mills. Also, costs for special-education students have increased along with their enrollment, accounting for an additional 23 mills, or about $330,000, she said.
The budget also takes into consideration a decline in assessed values, which adds about 5 mills, plus an additional 4 mills needed for construction of a comprehensive vocational-technical center, Fineburg said.
The 1996-97 budget plan uses about $775,000 of the district's fund balance, leaving about $500,000 in the reserve, Fineburg said. Though some board members hinted at using more of that reserve, Fineburg said it would not be fiscally sound. Last year's budget used no money from the fund balance.
As with most school budgets, the majority of the cost is rooted in instructional costs, including teacher salaries and benefits. In Morrisville's case, this accounts for about 61 percent, or $6.9 million. The bulk of revenue comes from the local tax base - about 66 percent. Last year, the district spent about $6.3 million on instruction.
The budget battle may be particularly bloody in Morrisville this year. The board is split into two factions, one with five members who form a taxpayer-rights, conservative side and the other with four members who identify themselves as a ``parent platform'' and are generally thought to be more liberal.
Morrisville Ousts Chief Of Schools Elizabeth Fineburg Has Served The School District For 33 Years.
September 26, 1997|By Chris Seper, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Elizabeth Fineburg's 33-year career in the Morrisville School District ends in June. Board members voted, 7-2, Wednesday night not to renew her contract.
The majority said it was time for a change - to end a relationship between a board and superintendent in which there was no trust and one side barely communicated with the other. Fineburg and her supporters, however, said her demise completed a power play by glory-hungry, meddling board members.
``Day-to-day petty issues driven by individual board members' agendas are forced on the administrative cabinet, encouraging some quality administrators to leave the district,'' Fineburg said in a prepared statement Wednesday night.
Board members Marvin Dupree and Tina Fitzpatrick voted to keep Fineburg, and Paul Bunting, Ken Junkins, Frank McCarthy, Ed Nelson, Paul Nestor, Ron Schomo and Steve Worob voted not to renew her contract. Th board also voted to advertise for a new superintendent.
Fineburg had two statements ready Wednesday night: an acceptance speech and another critical of the board. She said she was surprised by the vote but declined to say why.
School officials had said for weeks her contract was in jeopardy.
``I don't care what school district, school board or superintendent we're talking about, you need to have an element of trust between the board and superintendent,'' Bunting said.
Board member Nestor said it was ``time for change.'' He wanted to move the district in a new direction, but Fineburg wasn't ``leading us in new ways.''
Junkins said communication with the board and superintendent had broken down and reached a point where they were beyond repair.
Fineburg agreed communication had broken down, but she laid the problem at the board's feet. Information from her office to board members has increased ``400 percent over the last two year,'' she said.
Dupree claimed every board member except Worob who voted against keeping Fineburg did so for personal reasons. Nestor admits he blames Fineburg for his wife being released from the district in 1995, but says his problems with Fineburg are based on other issues. She was an elementary school aide and no reason was publicly given for her dismissal.
Schomo, Nelson and Junkins had also been singled out by former school officials as enemies of Fineburg. Dupree added McCarthy and Bunting to that list yesterday.
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Dupree said the new majority's policies, including a new teacher contract and the releasing of Fineburg, will send taxes skyrocketing. Fineburg will be the fourth administrator to leave the district in a year. A new one will be hired for much more than Fineburg's $95,000 salary, he said.
Bunting said Wednesday's meeting was the ``saddest'' he ever sat in on. He said he liked Fineburg, but that he had to put that aside after weighing the ``pluses and minuses.''
The relationship between Fineburg and some board members was ``contentious'' but not unprofessional, Bunting said.
Fineburg, a Morrisville native, joined the district in 1965 as an elementary teacher and later became an assistant principal, head of pupil services, and assistant superintendent before taking the top job.
As an educator, she created the district's first physical education program and was the cofounder of the Morrisville Brain Trust, an organization that fueled academic programs and raised money through donations and grants.
SAT scores are at a 10-year high, and she says her technology program is better than any other district's in the county.
Fineburg needs one more year of work after June to retire without a financial penalty. She said she did not know whether she would seek a new position.
She also could reapply for her current job. She said she had not decided whether she would.
Superintendent Threatens To File Suit The Morrisville School District Relieved Her Of Her Duties Monday Night. Her Contract Expires In June.
January 07, 1998|By Heather Moore, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Making allegations of sexual discrimination, Sunshine Law violations and denial of due process, outgoing Morrisville School District Superintendent Elizabeth ``Betsy'' Fineburg threatened yesterday to sue the district and school board.
Her threats came a day after the school board unanimously voted at a special meeting Monday night to excuse Fineburg, a 34-year veteran with the Bucks County school district, from her responsibilities. She will continue to be paid until June 30, when her contract expires.
Fineburg was released from the district before her contract expired, school board President Paul Nestor said, because there was a ``marked decrease in the superintendent's response to what the board needed'' since she was told last fall that her contract would not be renewed.
``There were negative memos, threats, insinuations,'' Nestor said. ``The relationship became, at that point, unmaintainable.''
Said school board Vice President Ken Junkins: ``It's kind of like a divorce: When there are irreconcilable differences, you need to take actions to separate the parties.''
Fineburg was notified of the board's decision to relieve her of her district duties Saturday morning when a typed letter signed by Nestor was hand-delivered to her house. That letter, Fineburg said in an interview yesterday, denied her due process under the law and is a breach of the Sunshine Law, which requires government actions to take place in public meetings.
But school board members said only discussion to relieve Fineburg took place during executive sessions. The public vote, they said, happened Monday night, and the letter to Fineburg was a courtesy.
When Fineburg arrived at work Monday morning, she said, Nestor, Junkins and school board member Ron Schomo were waiting for her with armed constables.
Fineburg, however, refused to leave. She called 911, she said, because she did not think it was appropriate to be alone with the school board members. She spent the rest of Monday working and called in sick yesterday.
``This has really taken a toll on me, health-wise, this constant harassment,'' Fineburg said.
She has asked the Pennsylvania Department of Education to look into the matter, she said, and plans to file a sexual discrimination complaint with the state Human Relations Commission.
``There have been specific comments directed to me from board member(s) because of my sex,'' Fineburg said in a written statement.
School board members also have ``driven every female administrator out of this district,'' she said, and have compensated male administrators better than their female counterparts.
The district's new elementary school principal is being paid $86,000 a year, Fineburg said, although his female predecessor was paid $78,000. Likewise, the new middle-senior high school principal is being paid an annual salary of $88,000, whereas the former female principal was paid $79,000, she said.
But Nestor called the discrimination claims ``nonsense'' and said the district had always hired the most qualified person regardless of sex. The district's new principals are paid more, he said, because they had more educational experience than their predecessors.
Morrisville Parents Are Concerned After School Closing The Board Agreed To More Crossing Guards. Added Supervision Was Sought For The Consolidated School.
October 02, 1994|By Molly Peterson, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Eileen Dreisbach's note to the M.R. Reiter Elementary School is "in big red letters." Its message: Don't ever let her daughter leave the school without her.
Dreisbach and her neighbor Anna Emery walk to the school with their daughters, ages 9 and 10, from their Manor Park homes every morning, and back again in the afternoon. They cross several dangerous intersections during the 25-minute, mile-long walk, including two Route 1 exit ramps.
The walk was among many issues raised by Manor Park residents at Wednesday's school board meeting, now that Manor Park Elementary has closed and its students have been transferred to M.R. Reiter. A $700,000 capital reserve fund, established last month, caused residents to question the legitimacy of closing the school in the first place. There are also concerns about supervision, now that the student body has nearly doubled.
The board took immediate steps to solve one of the problems - moving the starting times of three crossing guards from 8 a.m. to 7:45 a.m.
Two of the guards are stationed at the exit ramps, and the third is at the corner of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania Avenues.
Board President Edward Nelson said he would also talk to Police Chief Victor Cicero about hiring more crossing guards, at the school district's expense, for the route from Manor Park to M.R. Reiter.
Dreisbach and Emery were elated by the board's action, but they still have other concerns. Unlike Manor Park, for example, M.R. Reiter is not air- conditioned.
Dreisbach also worries that the increase in the number of students has led to inadequate supervision, especially on the playground. Each school had about 170 students last year; enrollment at M.R. Reiter is now 327.
"There's a little more heavy-duty horseplay," she said after the meeting. ''My daughter's coming home with more black-and-blue marks than she used to."
District Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg said Thursday that she has not been notified of any problems with supervision, but added, "we can certainly look into it."
Several residents also told the board they were angry that after Manor Park
closed, a new, $700,000 capital reserve fund was approved at the Aug. 24 board meeting. The fund will finance long-needed roof repairs at area schools. "You had plenty of money," Emery said. "You could have kept our school open."
But Fineburg said Thursday that the capital reserve fund was not an issue in the decision to close Manor Park. The primary reason for the closing, she said, was consolidation. It is expected to save about $295,000 in annual costs, and M.R. Reiter is large enough to accommodate all its present students and still allow for growth. "We were looking to the future," she said.
Great work! Here's another one.
Morrisville May Face Tax Increase The District Estimates Its Budget Will Need To Grow By About $500,000 For The Next School Year.
May 01, 1998|By Lewis Kamb, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
The school district's new budget is beginning to take form, but taxpayers may not like what they see.
Preliminary estimates place the 1998-99 school year operating budget at just more than $11 million - about $500,000 more than the current year's allotment.
That means Morrisville residents - who already pay the highest millage rate in the county - likely will face a slight tax increase, school officials said at a budget work session on Wednesday.
Salary increases, new hires and rises in general operating costs account for most of the half-million dollar hike from last year, they said.
The district also may need to find an additional $670,000 to pay for proposed capital-improvement projects that will not be covered under the forthcoming budget.
``These are projects that we think are important, but we just couldn't fit into the budget,'' said interim Superintendent John Gould.
The list includes basic maintenance improvements, such as parking lot repavings and locker refurbishings, as well as technology and classroom enhancements, such as computer upgrades and the development of a sixth-grade learning center.
``We'll have to consider paying for these projects through bond issues or other alternative funding sources,'' Gould said.
Borrowing more money may not seem like a viable option for an indebted school district still paying off a bond issue from six years ago. But a local bond expert outlined several options that could cover needed improvement projects and not increase tax rates.
If current debt payments are restructured, said Chris Corcoran, a PNC Bank financial consultant, the district ``can borrow as little as $1 million or up to $4 million without adding a single mill to your budget.''
In addition, any new money borrowed that is not immediately needed could be invested, Corcoran said, raising thousands of dollars in interest that could be used to pay off existing debts.
Board member Steve Worob questioned why the district would want to borrow more money when in just two years it will have completely paid off roughly $640,000 in debts.
Corcoran answered that even though the district would be out of debt, it still would not have the money it needs now - or in the future - to pay for maintenance and improvement projects.
``You have to borrow money now just to get you through the next year,'' said Corcoran, whom the district had asked to advise it on bond matters. ``You have to. There's no way of getting around that.''
A big part of the reason to borrow more funds, school officials said, is an estimated $676,000 in unanticipated personnel costs that will be covered by the current school budget. That money, which budgeters had anticipated would be a surplus available for the forthcoming budget, largely evaporated with a January court decision that forced the district to rehire several janitors and secretaries laid off in 1992.
Besides paying the new staff salaries and back wages under the ruling, an out-of-court settlement paid to former Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg, whom the school board ousted in January with six months remaining on a $95,000 annual contract, further burdened the district and cut into the expected surplus.
School Board Incumbents Ousted After Teacher Strikes
November 09, 1989|By Lynda Macellaro and Jonathan Berr, Special to The Inquirer
In the wake of bitter teachers' strikes this fall, Bristol Borough and Morrisville residents each voted Tuesday to oust an incumbent school board member.
Voters ousted Bristol board president Carmen Mignoni, 71. Mignoni, a Democrat, lost to Republican Joyce Frake, 49, a data-entry operator, by 34 votes in the only contested Bristol school election. The new board will choose its new president.
The unofficial tally had Frake winning 1,483 to 1,449.
In Morrisville, Democrat Kristina Makansi, 29, a homemaker, lost her school board seat to Democrat Paul Bunting, 35, an accounting clerk and auditor. Bunting received about 51 percent of the vote to Makansi's 49 percent.
Makansi's was the only contested seat in the election.
"This is the last hurrah for me," Mignoni said in a telephone interview
from his home after the election results were apparent. "In other countries, they might have shot me. But the Bristol people spoke out and said, 'Carmen, get out.' "
The veteran school board member blamed his defeat on his support of the ouster of popular Bristol Borough Junior-Senior High School basketball coach Thomas Kaczor last May. Mignoni was one of two school board members who voted against Kaczor's reinstatement in June.
Bristol Borough Education Association President Patricia Gellard said that she thought that Mignoni's defeat was the result of his handling of the eight- week long teachers' strike in the district.
"When you're president of the school board and the strike is prolonged, I would assume it would have a negative effect on him," Gellard said. "Let's face it, parents wanted their kids back in school."
Bristol Borough school board members Jean Jacoby, Louis Persichetti and William Pezza, who ran unopposed, were re-elected.
Voters in the Morrisville School District also may have voiced displeasure with the school board's handling of the 9-week-old teachers' strike in their ouster of Makansi.
"A lot of people in Morrisville are sick of incumbents, no matter where they are from," said Makansi. "I'm not going to stop caring about education in Morrisville just because I'm not on the school board."
Morrisville school board members Wayne Almond and candidates Thomas Coolbaugh and Alfred Radosti, who ran unopposed, were re-elected.
Superintendent Of Morrisville's Schools Steps Down The School Board Bought Out Cornelius Van Cain's Contract. Former Members Said He Was Forced Out.
December 31, 1992|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Cornelius Van Cain's 15-year career in the Morrisville School District ended Tuesday night with a quick vote, a short statement, a $100,000-plus settlement and a deafening silence.
School board members refused to discuss Cain's resignation and settlement or provide the exact amount of the contract buyout. According to a news release handed out after the meeting, Cain was leaving his position as superintendent of the small Bucks County school district to pursue other educational interests.
But former school board members and supporters, who hailed Cain as a dedicated and progressive educator, said the superintendent was pushed out of the job he had held since 1989.
"Van tried very hard to get along with the board," said former board member Wayne Almond, who resigned in August for health and personal reasons. ''This was a carefully orchestrated plot to get him out."
Almond pointed to recent board decisions that shifted several of Cain's responsibilities, such as oversight of personnel and financial matters, to Assistant Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg. Immediately after accepting Cain's resignation, the board appointed Fineburg acting superintendent.
"They had a steady program of taking power away from the superintendent and giving it to the assistant superintendent," Almond said.
Most of the current school board members were voted into office in 1991 on a platform of fiscal responsibility and a pledge not to raise taxes. Several jobs were eliminated and teachers were laid off last spring when the board adopted a 1992-93 budget without a tax increase.
Cain has been credited with designing and implementing an education program - called the "immersion model" - in which students take classes in longer blocks of time. Lessons in core subjects such as math, science and history are coordinated with English, reading and writing assignments. The program started in September.
Yesterday, Cain and board members continued to refuse to comment on his resignation.
"I've really enjoyed these past 15 years and I wish the district well," Cain, 48, said from his home.
The board voted unanimously to accept Cain's resignation and grant him a settlement equal to 1 1/2 years' pay. Board member Thomas Coolbaugh, who has supported Cain, was out of town. Cain, who made $76,000 last year, had 2 1/2 years left on his contract.
"I don't think it's any secret Dr. Cain and the board had a difference of opinion on educational philosophy and how the district should be run," said Phillip Brown, a former board president whose term expired earlier this month. ''They reduced his responsibilities - traditionally those a superintendent needs to run a school district."
John Warenda, who was president during most of his eight-year tenure on the board, said the new board was not letting Cain do his job.
"I don't think they wanted anyone to interfere with their efforts to micro-manage this school district," Warenda said.
Fineburg will serve as acting superintendent until a replacement is found, but has said she is interested in the position. School officials said they would start a search for a new superintendent.
Former Member Appointed To Board
January 14, 1990|By Lynda Macellaro, Special to The Inquirer
In a 5-3 vote Wednesday night, the Morrisville school board appointed former school board member Kristina Makansi to fill a vacancy left by another member's resignation.
Former school board member Richard Dobuski resigned in December. His term would have expired in 1991.
Makansi, 29, a homemaker, served on the board from March through December of last year. She was appointed to the board when former member Rose Fogarty resigned. Makansi lost her seat in November's election to Republican Paul Bunting.
The board's selection was based on a 15-minute interview Tuesday night with each of three candidates.
School board president John Warenda Jr. and school board members Philip Brown, Wayne Almond, Robert Piazza Sr. and Thomas Coolbaugh voted in favor of Makansi's appointment. School board members Bunting, Jack Buckman and Alfred Radosti opposed the appointment.
Before the meeting, Makansi said that the board's questioning this time around was more involved than it had been last year. At that time, she said, she wasn't competing with anyone else for the seat.
Makansi decided to apply for the position because she wanted to remain active in school affairs, she said. She said there were some important decisions to be made this year that she wanted to be part of, including a possible merger between the Morrisville and Pennsbury school districts, contract talks, budget sessions and curriculum offerings.
She said she most likely would not run for a seat in the 1991 election
because she and her husband are to begin a business.
Almond said after the meeting that Makansi did extremely well in her interview and that the board was happy to have her back.
Makansi will be formally sworn in at another time.
Board Oks Financing For Study Of Merger
August 13, 1989|By Kimberly J. McLarin, Inquirer Staff Writer
The Morrisville school board on Wednesday agreed to spend $11,250 on a study examining the financial and academic impact of a proposed merger with the Pennsbury School District.
The board voted 7-1 in favor of the study, with the understanding that the Pennsbury school board would agree to pay the other half of the study's $22,500 cost. The Pennsbury board is expected to vote on the proposal Aug. 21.
Morrisville board Vice President Philip Brown and members Richard Dobuski, Livia Evans, Wayne Almond, Roy Snare, Kristina Makansi and Robert Piazza voted for the study. Board President John Warenda was absent.
Board member John Buckman voted against the study, calling it a waste of money.
"I've never been in favor of merger anyway, unless the people get the right to vote on it in a referendum," he said.
Buckman also questioned why the board was voting on the issue during an agenda meeting, during which the board normally does not take action.
But Brown said it made sense for the Morrisville board to vote on the proposal first because Morrisville was seeking the merger.
"We're deciding to do the first piece of concrete work that would be necessary if the merger were to happen," he said.
The Morrisville school board voted early this year to seek a merger with the more affluent Pennsbury district, although there had been talk of a merger for much longer.
The small Morrisville district is suffering from a declining tax base and lack of commercial development. As the value of a Morrisville mill has decreased, the number of mills needed to finance the school district has increased drastically, causing taxpayers to cry out.
John Miniscalcl, who said he had recently moved to the district, chastised the school board Wednesday night for the high taxes.
"You're squeezing me until I can't even go out and buy an ice cream cone," he said.
The merger study would be conducted by Rod Johnson of Fairmount Capital Advisors in Philadelphia. It would compare the economic and educational status of the two school districts for the next five years if they remained independent with the economic and educational status of a single district created by a merger in 1990-91 or 1991-92.
The study would project the millage rate of a merged district.
Morrisville has the highest tax rate in Bucks County at 358 mills per $1,000 of assessed valuation. That means the owner of a Morrisville home assessed at the district average of $5,000 will pay $1,790 in school taxes this year.
By comparison, Pennsbury's tax rate for 1989-90 is 254.5 mills. The average home in Pennsbury also is assessed at $5,000, but a homeowner would pay $1,272.50 in school taxes.
At $67.6 million, Pennsbury's budget for the 1989-90 school year is more than eight times larger than Morrisville's $8.29 million budget. Pennsbury has about 9,600 students to Morrisville's roughly 1,100.
School Board Tries To Bar Former Workers' Benefits The Action Heightened Tensions In The Morrisville District. A Union Spokeswoman Called It A Tough Blow.
September 26, 1993|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
Tensions between the school board and former secretaries and custodians heightened last week when the district made a move to block the ex-workers from receiving unemployment compensation.
Members of the Morrisville Educational Support Personnel Association received a letter from the state last week informing them that the school district was appealing the Bureau of Unemployment Compensation's decision to grant them benefits.
"The board felt that was consistent with the position it has taken and with the unfair-labor-practice charge," said William F. Thompson Jr., an associate of Board Solicitor Ralf Gilbert. "We were at an impasse. The law clearly states they are not entitled to unemployment."
MESPA president Sally Eperjesi said it was a tough blow for union members, who started receiving unemployment benefits only earlier this month.
"We're very upset," she said. "That's our right."
After the contract between the school district and MESPA expired in July, the administration replaced the 16 secretaries and custodians with independent contractors. District officials said that the union never made a realistic offer, and that they were saving money by hiring outside help.
The union then filed an unfair-labor-practice charge with the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board. Union members contended that the board never bargained in good faith, and called the district's actions a lockout. They have been picketing the district's four buildings since July.
The battle spilled into the board's monthly meeting Wednesday night. Students and staff urged the board to resume negotiations, saying the district was in disarray without the MESPA members.
Student Julie Mack told the board that the new workers "don't have a clue what's going on."
"Some don't even speak English," the Morrisville senior said. "They are staring at the girls walking around; we don't feel safe."
Morrisville Education Association president Jane Curry said the board's decision to use independent contractors had "proved to be disastrous to the educational program."
The board listened silently to most of the comments. But board President James Murray chastised Curry for her public statements.
"That is an inappropriate statement to make at a board meeting," Murray said. "You should have talked about this during the meet-and-discuss session," referring to private meetings between the board and staff members.
Although Murray and the other board members kept silent for the rest of the session, he disputed the public comments after the meeting.
"Our dispute with the MESPA is in the court; we believe we dealt with them fairly," Murray said. "Things (in the schools) are going well enough. Some people are trying to make them go not as well."
Morrisville School Board Member Steps Down James Murray Fought A Bitter Battle To Keep His Seat, Then Decided He Didn't Want To Serve In The Minority.
December 15, 1995|By Jennifer Van Doren, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
School board member James Murray spent months duking it out over the November election - a nasty and bitter battle between incumbents and challengers that was waged at meetings and in local newspaper editorial pages.
Murray held onto his seat firmly while two of his incumbent colleagues were defeated.
But Murray quit Wednesday night, abandoning his new four-year term before it begins, saying he did not want to serve on the school board if he had to be in the minority.
"I'll be sorry to see him go," said board member Frank McCarthy. "He had a lot to offer."
Murray, who was not at the meeting, sent his resignation in a letter and did not return phone calls yesterday. In the letter, he wrote that he had been reluctant to run in the first place and that he felt the nastiness of the campaign had been unfairly targeted at him.
"As it turned out, most of the people who are my closest allies on the board were defeated in the election, and it is now clear to me that I would have little influence on future actions of the board," Murray wrote. "I learned that there are few frustrations more discouraging and that there is no greater waste of time than to be a minority member on a school board."
Before the election, Murray was in a solid conservative majority; controversial votes usually went 7-1, with only board member Paul Nestor objecting. Now, many expect the three new board members to join Nestor.
Although board members said they did not know about Murray's plans to resign, most did not seem surprised as board President Ed Nelson read the resignation letter. When the board voted to accept Murray's resignation, the ''ayes" were barely audible.
"I didn't always agree with Mr. Murray, but I congratulate him for taking the time and energy to do all that he did over the years," Nestor said.
Other board members shared his sentiments.
"He did his best for education. He cared about education, and he always was a champion of the taxpayer," said board member Stephen Worob. "I think he has helped a lot of people afford to remain in this town."
The board must choose a replacement within 30 days. Anyone who is interested should submit a resume to District Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg.
The board will hold a special meeting Jan. 10 to select an interim member. Two possible candidates mentioned so far are the board members unseated in last month's election - Marvin Dupree and Marlys Mihok.
Dupree, who was at the meeting, said he would submit his application. Mihok could not be reached for comment. Randy Kenner, also defeated a month ago, has expressed interest in running for Borough Council.
School Board Candidate Picked To Fill Vacant Seat
July 25, 1993|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
As one of three school board candidates to win spots on both the Democratic and Republican ballots, Frank McCarthy is virtually guaranteed a seat in the November election.
But now he's going to get an early start.
On Wednesday, the Morrisville school board appointed McCarthy to finish the term of Thomas Coolbaugh, who resigned because he is moving out of the borough.
McCarthy, 37, will be sworn in sometime in August, school district officials said. He will serve in Coolbaugh's seat until the term expires at the end of November.
McCarthy and resident Thomas Wisnosky were nominated to fill the seat at Wednesday's special meeting. Although Board President James Murray nominated Wisnosky, he followed the other board members and voted for McCarthy.
"Frank is a lifetime resident, he has two children in the schools and is a graduate of the school," Murray said after the vote. "I know he would make an excellent board member, as would (Wisnosky). I just think we should have a unanimous vote here."
McCarthy graduated from Morrisville High School in 1973. He works as a supervisor in a petrochemical plant.
Wisnosky is a member of the Morrisville Economic Development Corp. and active in a local theater group, Murray said. Both Wisnosky and McCarthy were interviewed by the board before the meeting.
Before his resignation, Coolbaugh had been the only school board member with children enrolled in the Morrisville school system.
Wow! That's a mother lode of documentation. Keep posting stuff like this. Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it repeat it repeat it.
It just cracks me up to read in this stuff the times Eileen Dreisbech (spelling?) was so strongly, openly against the dealings of people who are now some of her best buds.
Excerpts from the 5/1/1998 article above:
"The district also may need to find an additional $670,000 to pay for proposed capital-improvement projects that will not be covered under the forthcoming budget."
"The list includes basic maintenance improvements, such as parking lot repavings and locker refurbishings, as well as technology and classroom enhancements, such as computer upgrades and the development of a sixth-grade learning center."
"A big part of the reason to borrow more funds, school officials said, is an estimated $676,000 in unanticipated personnel costs that will be covered by the current school budget. That money, which budgeters had anticipated would be a surplus available for the forthcoming budget, largely evaporated with a January court decision that forced the district to rehire several janitors and secretaries laid off in 1992."
"Besides paying the new staff salaries and back wages under the ruling, an out-of-court settlement paid to former Superintendent Elizabeth Fineburg, whom the school board ousted in January with six months remaining on a $95,000 annual contract, further burdened the district and cut into the expected surplus."
So locking out MESPA workers and losing the resulting lawsuit and having to pay back wages, combined with ditching a Superintendent and paying her not to work, evaporated funds for things like basic maintenance, parking lot pavings, technology and classroom enhancements, etc.
Some very familiar names were in the thick of it all.
I don't think they are actually close. I think its a matter of things like Eileen D. is friends with Pat Broffman who is friends with people like Mihok, from what I've seen anyway. And, of course, there's the fact that she'll jump through whatever hoops Jane Burger tells her to so if Burger tells her to make nice with certain people now, I have no doubt Eileeen would, no matter what went on in the past. It is wild that Eileen will support ideas now that she would not support when her own children were in school. Sad...
Here's the main point I'm seeing from these articles:
Radosti, Mihok, Worob, and their anti-tax, anti-cooperation, my way or the highway compatriots have been in power in Morrisville for 25 years and we have noting to show for it.
They have had the advantage of having 25 years of spreading whatever they want around town. No wonder so many long time residents are so misguided by these people.
I don't think a lot of people pay attention when it comes to the school board stuff for whatever reasons. Seems to me that people may know those names for years and years & automatically put them back in the seats without ever really getting to know what kind of people they are. I would think there is a large majority of the population in town who has no idea what effects a school board can have on the entire town when they vote on election day.
We have plenty to show for this...Crumbling infrastructure, a plethora of tobacco shops and nail salons, a blighted main street, more gang activity, and the endless acrimony of the townspeople toward each other. It's a wonder to behold, and yet with all of this negativity, we have wonderful families and neighbors, beautiful homes in charming neighborhoods, a history rich in important people and events, a great canal and glorious river. Just imagine if a tenth of the potential that the ville holds was realized instead of squandered in petty disputes and lifelong grudges. It is saddening to see the names being mentioned in these articles, and these same people still following the same destructive paths today.
“The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.”
If only...
You forgot fireworks, but your point is well taken.
Angry yet, you ask?
Yeah, I am.
What the hell should I do about it?
Letters: Morrisville Matters v. Stay on Track
Published: Sunday, April 10, 2011
Concerning your article titled “Morrisville Matters: Balance on school board is essential” found in the March 31 edition, I feel that you should have added the byline, “paid for by the candidates of Morrisville Matters.” As someone who follows the Morrisville School System very closely I was surprised at what I read. Especially since the current school board, which has not cut one class, one teacher, one program or one sports activity. However, they have been able to lower property taxes for two years in a row and added girls softball. How, you might ask? They have, under the leadership of the school board president, Bill Hellmann, reduced wasteful spending and finally staunched the hemorrhaging of money so familiar these days within other school districts. It is so obvious that no one checked the statements in this article made by the Morrisville Matters candidates. My hope is that you give equal space to the Stay on Track candidates for Morrisville School Board. It would seem only fair in a free press society.
Diane Hughes, Morrisville
http://articles.philly.com/1991-01-13/news/25817327_1_board-meeting-financial-advice-education-program
Radosti and Buckman refuse to look for professional advice.
Board To Pay For Financial Advice
January 13, 1991|By Michelle Rizzo, Special to The Inquirer
Looking for advice on how to deal with its financial morass, the Morrisville school board voted, 4-3, last week to turn to consultants from the University of Pennsylvania.
The district said it would pay up to $5,000 for the help, prompting board member Paul Bunting to complain, "Here we go again, expending more public funds on lawyers and consultants."
Professors from Penn's Graduate School of Education and its Wharton School of Business will be hired by Morrisville to "help the district develop alternative ways to deal with our financial problems," according to a handout distributed to the public.
"We're hoping to do two things," Superintendent C. Van Cain told reporters after a board meeting Wednesday. "One is to try to make our education program even better." The other is "to learn some of the newest techniques in the business world," he said.
The program, which board President Philip Brown said would cost "no more than $5,000," will start during the current school year and will go on indefinitely. In an interview after the meeting, Brown said the entire program, which is to be implemented in three phases, might last two to five years.
The goals, Brown said, are to show district leaders how to improve their managerial skills, cut costs and entice businesses to donate more resources to the cause of education.
The plan is the brainchild of Charles Dwyer, a Penn professor, and Harris Sokoloff, executive director of the Suburban Schools Studies Council, Brown said.
"They give it to us, but we develop it ourselves. It's ours. It's not something that we're hiring them to do for us. They will be consulting with us in terms of ideas - ways we can find to get the maximum creativity and involvement of people who make up the administration," he said.
Three board members - John Buckman, Alfred A. Radosti and Bunting - opposed the plan.
In other business, the board discussed the possible abolishment of Assistant Superintendent Betsy Fineburg's position. If the board votes on Jan. 23 to do away with the $54,000-a-year position, Fineburg may be out of a job on June 30. Cain said no decision had yet been made to try to find another spot for Fineburg.
Fineburg has been working for the district for almost 27 years. She said the district might let her go three years before she would be entitled to retirement benefits.
http://articles.philly.com/1990-04-01/news/25918006_1_teacher-salary-top-teacher-donald-atkiss
In Morrisville, A Bitter End To A Bitter Teachers' Strike
April 01, 1990|By Michelle Rizzo and Kimberly J. McLarin, Special to The Inquirer
Read the full article at the link because there's no news in this one at all. Radosti and Buckman said no once again and Buckman stormed from another meeting because the meanies on the other side voted against him.
"Voting no were board members John R. Buckman, Paul Bunting and Alfred A. Radosti."
"Morrisville teachers are not underpaid; the problem is, teachers in the surrounding districts are overpaid," Bunting said amid cheers and whistles. ''If they want economic parity with Council Rock, they should go teach in Council Rock. This is not a contract, it's an obscenity!"
"Bunting and Buckman stormed from the meeting after the vote was taken and did not return."
http://articles.philly.com/1991-09-29/news/25801079_1_board-meetings-board-members-new-board
Morrisville Superintendent's Contract Renewed
September 29, 1991
Nothing new here either. Radosti and Buckman said no again.
"After a sometimes heated discussion, members of the Morrisville school board voted, 5-3, to extend the contract of the superintendent for three years, and also to increase his salary by 13 percent for the current school year.
The raise will boost Superintendent Cornelius V. Cain's annual salary from $67,000 to $76,000.
The discussion Wednesday produced passionate words of support from parents, district principals and others. An evaluation committee, made up of four board members and formed to rate Cain's performance, repeatedly rated him ''outstanding" and "exceptional."
About 50 people attended the meeting, most in support of retaining Cain. The overflow crowd prompted the meeting to be moved from the small classroom regularly used for board meetings to the auditorium of the high school.
Others, however, such as the five people who are all but assured of winning election to the board in November, wanted the issue deferred to the new board. So, too, did current board members John Buckman and Paul Bunting.
Buckman, Bunting and Alfred Radosti voted against the raise and contract extension..."
http://articles.philly.com/2000-05-15/news/25619182_1_million-spending-plan-budget-board-member
Divided Board Approves Budget For Bucks County Tech School The $13.8 Million Plan Is Nearly Twice The Previous Budget. Two Participating Districts Say They're Paying Too Much.
May 15, 2000|By Matthew P. Blanchard, INQUIRER SUBURBAN STAFF
A divisive budget season for the Bucks County Technical School has ended, with the school's joint board voting to adopt a controversial $13.8 million budget by the narrowest possible margin.
But the approval Thursday night came at the cost of one board member's resignation, and a continuing sense of discord among the six school districts that send students to the school.
"Supporters of the budget needed a minimum of 28 votes from the 54-member board, and 28 was all they got. Morrisville and Bristol Borough voted to reject the budget, saying it was an unfair burden on their tiny districts."
"But speaking before the vote, Morrisville School Board member Ed Nelson said he had been misled about the share Morrisville would have to pay when he voted in 1995 in favor of the school's $42 million expansion.
"Some promises were made for Morrisville's vote," Nelson said. "All Morrisville is asking for now is the financial relief we were led to believe would take place."
"Nelson then announced his resignation from the board. "You got the school you wanted," he said. "I hope everyone is happy about it."
"The four larger districts - Bensalem, Bristol Township, Neshaminy and Pennsbury - expect to send between 320 and 450 students to the tech school. Theoretically, that is enough to start cutting teacher positions and saving money in their regular schools."
"The smallest districts - Morrisville and Bristol Borough - expect to send fewer than 65 students each, and worry they will be unable to achieve any savings. They opposed the budget in the hope of reworking the formula by which costs are allocated among the six districts."
Buckman says no to accreditation
http://articles.philly.com/1990-10-14/news/25894988_1_middle-states-association-accreditation-schools-and-colleges
Accreditation Is Questioned To Pare Budget
October 14, 1990|By Michelle Rizzo, Special to The Inquirer
Looking for excess fat in an already lean budget, a Morrisville school board member has suggested doing away with accreditation for the middle-senior high school.
"I really wonder whether this is worth having," board member John Buckman said Wednesday at a board meeting, questioning the expense of applying for accreditation from the Middle States Association of Schools and Colleges.
The school has enjoyed a high rating from the Middle States Association - an independent, nonprofit accrediting agency - for at least 12 years. Every 10 years, the agency sends a team of educators and administrators to each school that applies to determine if its curriculum and facilities meet educational standards. Applicants must first complete an in-depth self- evaluation for one year.
M.R. Reiter has been ignored for twenty years.
http://articles.philly.com/1991-06-01/news/25786116_1_water-parks-water-rides-heat
So Hot, It Might As Well Not Be Spring Yet Another Scorcher Closes Area Schools
June 01, 1991|By Tanya Barrientos, Inquirer Staff Writer
"Even the alligators at the zoo, the kings of heat and humidity, hated it. That's how hot it was."
"It was 89 degrees in one of our second-floor elementary classrooms at 9 a.m.," said Van Cain, superintendent of the Morrisville School District in Bucks County."
"If we didn't close, we were afraid our students would become ill because of the heat. Our nurses warned that that is a real possibility," Cain said."
Everything old is new again.
There's no nice way to put it, so I won't say anything at all.
Blame your bonehead moves on somebody else (I was misled)
Quit or storm out when you don't get your way
Frickin' babies!
Does anyone know what the percentage is twenty years later?
Task Force Discusses Ways Around Closing An Elementary School
February 02, 1992
http://articles.philly.com/1992-02-02/news/26039844_1_task-force-class-sizes-grandview-elementary-school
"Seventy-five percent of the district's budget is spent on salaries and benefits. "What needs to happen is we need to pay these salaries to less people. Less people means less teachers."
Yes. Salaries + benefits have been in the 59-60% range the last several years.
For the 2011-12 budget, it's 59.45%.
For the 2010-11 budget, it was 59.04%.
Raymond Dominski, Tax Activist
September 05, 1994|By Rich Heidorn Jr., INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
Raymond S. Dominski, 67, a Morrisville school board member who once urged residents to "get out torches, pitchforks and battering rams" to press Pennsylvania lawmakers for more education funding, died Friday at Mercer Medical Center in Trenton.
Mr. Dominski became active in civic affairs after his retirement, serving as vice president of the Morrisville Taxpayers Association and leading opposition in 1990 to a teachers' contract that included a sharp salary increase.
After his 1991 election to the school board, he called repeatedly on the state legislature to reform the way schools are funded. With the property tax base crippled by the loss of industry, school officials in the blue-collar borough have been forced to cut programs, close two elementary schools, and raise taxes.
Morrisville is one of about 120 districts challenging the disparities in the state's property tax-based school financing system. Pretrial matters in the 1991 suit are scheduled to be heard in Commonwealth Court this fall.
Last year, frustrated over another property tax increase, Mr. Dominski proposed that the district run bingo nights to raise funding.
"I'm a board member and a tax protester," he once explained. "I'm trying to convey the message that increasing taxes every year is not the answer."
Mr. Dominski was a Philadelphia native and longtime Bucks County resident.
He was an Army veteran of World War II and a recipient of the Victory medal.
A graduate of LaSalle University, Mr. Dominski retired several years ago after about 35 years as a department manager for Unisys Corp. He also was a part-time real estate salesman and formerly owned a travel agency in Morrisville.
Surviving are his wife, H. Patricia Walsh Dominski; daughters, Kathleen Dornbaum and Lisa Breuner; a son, Derek; a stepson, Richard P. Peregoy; his father, Raymond; three sisters, and three grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. tomorrow at the Hutchinson Memorial Chapel of the First Presbyterian Church of Morrisville, 771 N. Pennsylvania Ave.
Bingo Proposed To Ease Morrisville's Tax Rate
May 30, 1993|By Lisa L. Colangelo, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
There were lots of empty seats at last week's school board meeting. But there are rarely any empty seats in a bingo hall.
Which gave school board member Raymond Dominski an idea - why not organize bingo games to help raise money for the financially strapped district?
"Bingo is very popular," Dominski said at Wednesday's school board meeting. "There's a lot of revenue to be had."
Faced with a proposed budget that calls for a tax rate increase of 95
mills, school board members said they were open to any alternative means of raising money.
Board Solicitor Ralf Gilbert said he would have to study the Pennsylvania laws concerning gambling as well as the school code to determine whether the district could host bingo games.
Earlier this month, the board reluctantly adopted a preliminary $10.2 million budget for the 1993-94 school year. Under that plan, a homeowner whose property is assessed at the borough average of $4,000 would pay $380 more in taxes.
With the present tax rate of 390.95 mills, the school tax bill on the same house is $1,563.80. Board members pledged to cut the budget and have already trimmed about 1 mill.
Last year the board was able to prevent a tax increase through a reorganization of the school system, which serves about 1,100 students. Several staff members, including teachers, were laid off. Officials have not said whether more staff cuts are being considered.
Dominski said the board was open to all ideas on raising revenue without raising taxes. He said bingo games would be popular.
"I'm sure we'll have a better turnout than what we have here tonight," Dominski said. Only a handful of people attended Wednesday's meeting, and most were district staffers and newspaper reporters.
In the nearby Pennsbury School District, the school board is considering adopting three taxes - an admissions tax, a mechanical-device tax and a landfill tax - to help bring in revenue. Dominski said he doubted the Morrisville school board would consider approving any additional taxes.
The board is scheduled to hold a budget hearing on Wednesday and adopt the final budget on June 16.
In other business, the board voted to appoint Marvin DuPree as secretary and Shirley McGoldrick as treasurer of the school board.
Foes Say Morrisville Councilman Is Jumping Gun On Idea For School
March 27, 1992|By Jeffrey Fleishman, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
John Engelberger's opinions and how he expresses them have often put him through the wringer in the hardscrabble river town of Morrisville.
In May, Engelberger, a borough councilman and a member of the National Rifle Association, carried what some said was a holstered pistol to a town meeting to protest an ordinance banning guns from the municipal building.
This time, Engelberger wants the Morrisville School District to accept his plan to teach firearms safety to students. The instruction could be done in physical education classes, much the same way children are taught about sex and baseball, according to letters Engelberger sent to school and police officials.
"It's stupid," said Lee D. Rockafellow, mayor of this Bucks County town of 10,000. "I don't think he thinks things through. The teaching of gun handling should not be done in school. It actually forces the use of weapons."
Engelberger said he was trying to save lives. He said that children increasingly were exposed to guns and that too many of them were becoming casualties.
"We can all wish that guns will go away, but that won't happen," he said. ''What I'm saying is give these kids safety training that (says) 'Hey, this is dangerous.' "
He said he was willing to take his idea a step further. "I'm not opposed to an (extracurricular) marksmanship program," said Engelberger, 61. "I don't see guns any worse than basketball. I think childen who do know how to shoot are more careful."
School Superintendent Cornelius Van Cain said district officials were studying Engelberger's safety proposal, which the councilman made to Cain in a letter last month.
"Don't say NO and risk the life of one of your students to a firearms tragedy because of ignorance," the letter stated.
Cain said he agreed that the availability of guns had put children increasingly at risk. But he said he was not convinced that schools should be used "to fix all of society's problems. It is an issue today, but should schools have a role in this and what should the extent of it be? I'm not sure we should have guns in classrooms."
School board member Paul Bunting said he saw merit in the idea, but questioned the role of the school. He added sarcastically: "As long as we're going to be dealing with AIDS and drugs and teenage pregnancy, why not throw in firearms? . . . the cesspool of stuff that doesn't belong in the school anyway."
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Rockafellow, who belongs to the same local gun club as Engelberger, isn't so philosophical: "Tell Cain if he's considering it, he's nuts."
In 1990, Bucks County's Juvenile Probation Office reported four incidents of youths carrying guns and knives into schools. That figure jumped to 26 in 1991.
Two youths were arrested at a school in central Bucks County last year for carrying guns. "We are seeing an increasing number of kids in schools with guns," said Robert Stanzione, a probation office supervisor.
The National Center for Health Statistics reported that in 1989 - the most recent data available - 4,384 youths ages 19 and under were killed by firearms. More than 560 of them were accidental.
Schools in a number of states, including Florida and California, are using videos and coloring books as part of gun safety programs. Engelberger said the NRA and other groups provided some of these instructional materials.
Cain said there had not been one gun incident in his 14 years with the Morrisvile district.
"I just don't think it's an issue," said Joanne Poland, president of the Parent Teacher Organization. "We have a lot of other crises to deal with, why
draw attention to something that's not an issue?"
But even Engelberger's critics said they don't doubt his genuine concern on most issues. Engelberger suggested two years ago that council members give up one month's salary - $140 - and offer it as reward money to catch vandals who were desecrating a cemetery.
Some described him as a passionate intellectual whose ideas are sometimes discarded because of his extreme tactics.
One of those times came in May, when Engelberger showed up at a town meeting carrying a holster to mock a 1982 township ordinance to keep firearms out of the municipal building. Engelberger never said what was in the holster, but several officials said it contained a gun.
He incurred the wrath of some of his colleagues. "You should be ashamed," Councilwoman Patricia Schell told then.
But Engelberger sat there undaunted. Nobody came to arrest him.
He will not be ignored, either. Since February, he has sent Cain three letters proposing gun safety classes.
"I recognize it's a touchy issue," he said in a recent interview. "I just feel there's a necessity . . . to say, 'Don't touch it, you can kill your friend.' "
"We applaud what Mr. Engelberger is doing," said John Jones, a Republican committeeman and a firearms safety instructor for the NRA. "But, not to make a pun, he does tend to shoot himself in the foot now and then. He's the Teddy Roosevelt of the Morrisville council."
Ahh - John Engelberger - brought Jane Burger to council and taught her the basics of everything she knows today, trusted her then fell asleep while she took everything from him. LOL
Better than the soap network.
"True or False? said...
Letters: Morrisville Matters v. Stay on Track
Published: Sunday, April 10, 2011
Concerning your article titled “Morrisville Matters: Balance on school board is essential” found in the March 31 edition, I feel that you should have added the byline, “paid for by the candidates of Morrisville Matters.” As someone who follows the Morrisville School System very closely I was surprised at what I read. Especially since the current school board, which has not cut one class, one teacher, one program or one sports activity. However, they have been able to lower property taxes for two years in a row and added girls softball. How, you might ask? They have, under the leadership of the school board president, Bill Hellmann, reduced wasteful spending and finally staunched the hemorrhaging of money so familiar these days within other school districts. It is so obvious that no one checked the statements in this article made by the Morrisville Matters candidates. My hope is that you give equal space to the Stay on Track candidates for Morrisville School Board. It would seem only fair in a free press society.
Diane Hughes, Morrisville"
What I find very sad about this article is that Diane Hughes is a retired public school teacher.
Isn't "Stay on Track" the 2009 version of the Morrisville Tea Party while the 2011 version is using "Stay on Course"? Is this useless letter another recycled piece of dreck from the past?
if you people cannot see the common links of people throughout the last 20-30 years here in morrisville and vote for them again you deserve what you get. get rid of a few of the names this time around. you should be angry. Are you? Are you angry enough?
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THIS!
Narcissistic personality disorder is a condition in which people have an inflated sense of self-importance and an extreme preoccupation with themselves.
Causes, incidence, and risk factors
The causes of this disorder are unknown. An overly sensitive personality and parenting problems may affect the development of this disorder.
Symptoms
A person with narcissistic personality disorder may:
React to criticism with rage, shame, or humiliation
Take advantage of other people to achieve his or her own goals
Have excessive feelings of self-importance
Exaggerate achievements and talents
Be preoccupied with fantasies of success, power, beauty, intelligence, or ideal love
Have unreasonable expectations of favorable treatment
Need constant attention and admiration
Disregard the feelings of others, and have little ability to feel empathy
Have obsessive self-interest
Pursue mainly selfish goals
Nailed it. Narcisstistic, and yet there seems to be so little to love. But love we must. That doesn't mean you have to vote for them, though.
MEET THE SUPERINTENDENT: Bill Ferrara sets out to prove why Morrisville School District is 'the best kept secret in Bucks County'
By John Williams
BucksLocalNews.com
Contributed photo
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MORRISVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT – William “Bill” Ferrara vividly remembers the year 2006 – his first year at Morrisville School District. At the time, he was the assistant principal at Morrisville Senior-Middle High School and recalls the feelings among students in his school.
“When I first came to Morrisville, it wasn’t the ‘cool’ thing to be smart,” he explained. “Students are now aware that there’s been a culture change.”
Ferrara said it was a turning point in Morrisville School District history. Teachers are articulating to students that they can be successful and, in turn, students are beginning to come around, he claims.
“Something can’t be taken away from you unless you let it be taken away from you,” said Ferrara.
Ferrara, who is originally from Feasterville and a graduate of Neshaminy High School, moved on to complete his higher education studies at the College of New Jersey, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in health and physical education and, later, a master of administration degree in physical education.
Soon after, he became a physical education teacher at a familiar location – his high school alma mater, Neshaminy. He was a teacher for 14 years, including a department chairperson for the health and physical education department before he took the position of assistant principal for a brief two-year stint.
Besides Neshaminy, Ferrara served as an assistant principal in Salisbury Township in the Lehigh Valley.
Ferrara was also an assistant football coach at Neshaminy, lending his offensive expertise to Head Coach Pat Bedesem’s staff. He said Bedesem had a tremendous impact on him.
Ferrara, himself, played wide out for Neshaminy in the late 70s, although, he joked, you will “never see my name in the record books for most receiving touchdowns.”
“I wasn’t that type of player,” he said.
Story above Continued!!!!
Ferrara served two years as an assistant principal in Morrisville School District and one-year as principal. He admits that he was fortunate to work with some great leaders during his time at Neshaminy.
“I had the privilege to work for Gary Bowman, who taught me to treat people as individuals first and as teachers, students, colleagues, et cetera, second,” he said. “You need to try and understand their point of view. It’s crucial.
“Your goal as an educator, as a leader, is to put people at the same table and make sound decisions that everyone can feel they had a hand in,” Ferrara continued.
Bruce Wyatt, former director of secondary education at Neshaminy High School, who retired from education in 2008, also played an influential role in developing his leadership abilities.
Morrisville School District is “the best kept secret in Bucks County,” Ferrara articulated, all while characterizing the school district’s teaching staff as “phenomenal.”
“You never hear anyone say ‘It’s not my job’ or ‘I can’t do this or that.’ Instead, they ask ‘How can I get this done?’ or ‘What can I do to make it happen? I’ve said it for years; Morrisville is the best kept secret in Bucks County."
He went on to say, “The Morrisville community is very fortunate to have the administrative team and teachers that we have. The school board meetings always look rehearsed, but when everything is broken down each member has the applicable information two or three weeks ahead of time. When the community gets involved with the superintendents advisory board it’s very laid back and we have open dialogue, which is what we need to keep the community pulse and some moral compass.”
He said without the fervent support of his family, he wouldn’t be able to do his job.
“There are people outside of education, such as my parents, who are hardworking lower-middle class parents, and my family, that are behind me 100 percent,” Ferrara said. “Without strong support at home, you couldn’t do this job.”
Ferrara’s son, Tyler, 19, graduated from Neshaminy this past year and is attending Bucks County Community College. He wants to transfer to Temple University and pursue a degree in mechanical engineering. Courtney, Ferrara’s daughter, is going into her senior year at Neshaminy. After high school, Courtney, who is 17-years-old, wants to head south to “Rocky Top” and attend school at the University of Tennessee for sports management.
He also took time to highlight some goals for the district.
“I think, basically, it’s paramount to offer a level of education to our students that’s high,” he explained. “How do we make education for our students better and how can they be productive in the classroom? Some students may feel they need to be more independent, some may not, so the more opportunities we give them, the more likely they are to be successful.”
He feels very strong about “professional development” for his teaching staff.
“We’re big on formative assessment,” Ferrara said. “More times than not, our teachers are the facilitators and they must be able to provide a quality education and work within a budget that works for our taxpayers.”
Morrisville doesn’t always receive praise from outside of the district, Ferrara confesses, but avowals that “we have great kids, teachers, professional staff and administrators.”
“The community needs to get together and make that point,” he stressed. “We will keep making that known.”
“This is a great place for me to be now in my career,” Ferrara announced, “because I’m surrounded by great people. Hopefully I can make the Morrisville School District proud and revitalize pride within our community.”
Originally published Thursday, July 14.
I have not been impressed by Ferrara so far. As far as I can see, he's just another SOC lackey and this is just another piece of propaganda planted in the newspaper.
Just a couple of items from the article:
"Morrisville School District is “the best kept secret in Bucks County,” Ferrara articulated, all while characterizing the school district’s teaching staff as “phenomenal.”
“You never hear anyone say ‘It’s not my job’ or ‘I can’t do this or that.’ Instead, they ask ‘How can I get this done?’ or ‘What can I do to make it happen? I’ve said it for years; Morrisville is the best kept secret in Bucks County."
The truth is that the moral of the staff is very low, just ask them privately. Of course he wouldn't hear them complain, they may as well make out their own pink slip if they dare.
"Hopefully I can make the Morrisville School District proud and revitalize pride within our community"?
Really? All this time a figured it was a self preserevation kind of thing on his part, that he was trying to resurrect his career in Morrisville following scandal at his old job.
But now I get it - he's doing what he does for us. I feel much better now. The fate of the children of Morrisville Borough are in good hands. (sarcasm)
Don't get me wrong, I do think he is trying to balance the needs of the school district with the wants of the school board. Could I do what he does? No, I don't think I could for a minute. I couldn't sell myself out for a paycheck. He needed a job and was given one in the Morrisville School District. I get why he has become such a good friend to the school board, he needs the job. After all look what happened to Dr. Yonson for showing her honesty & integrity.
http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/local/courier_times_news/opinion/editorials/poor-planning/article_1970bc72-9537-5906-984c-2410d43bb7aa.html
Poor Planning
Gov. Corbett received quite a beating over his very lean state budget, some of it deserved. Perhaps the worst pummeling had to do with $900 million in education cuts. A significant number that forced school districts to take a knife to their own budgets. A lot of programs took big hits and local taxes will go up to make up for the loss of state funds.
The governor was asked about this following a speech to a police chiefs group. What he said should become fodder for this year’s school board elections.
School boards, he said, should have planned better. He was referring to the fact that local school officials conveniently and lazily balanced their budgets on the back of $2 billion in now-vanished federal stimulus money.
He’s right. Former Gov. Ed Rendell gifted the money to school districts. It should have been used for capital projects; in other words, to build, expand and repair. The money was supposed to “stimulate” the economy by being spent in ways that would create jobs. The only jobs affected by Pennsylvania’s stimulus money was teaching jobs, as school boards used the federal dough to make payroll.
Problem is, the money was temporary. Local officials knew it would go away, but they used it to balance their budgets anyway.
That was poor planning.
Making matters worse, many districts did not mind Corbett’s call for districts to freeze wages. That would have saved about $400 million, which would have significantly blunted the loss of the federal stimulus funds.
That irresponsible decision should now stimulate election debate.
"this is just another piece of propaganda planted in the newspaper."
I'm not sure this is a fair characterization. Sometimes being a leader means telling people how awesome they are even though you know about and are (hopefully) trying to correct their shortcomings.
I think it is great that he is in the paper telling everyone how awesome M'ville is. Flaws? Sure we got 'em. Who doesn't? But it sure is nice to read something positive about our little boro and I am thrilled that he's putting it out there. He didn't say how great the school board is, he said, “we have great kids, teachers, professional staff and administrators.”
I'll take the positive press.
I'd like more info concerning this:
"Really? All this time a figured it was a self preserevation kind of thing on his part, that he was trying to resurrect his career in Morrisville following scandal at his old job."
Don't know the details. Heard he fooled around with a coworker, probably a subordinate, on school premises.
That didn't seem to deter the board from hiring him and promoting him.
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