Officials reelect George as head of LH board
The Laurel Highlands School Board re-elected its president to another year in office on Wednesday, but not without a contentious debate. During the board’s annual reorganization meeting, Edward S. George was renamed president on five votes, while director Judy Browell received three.
Director Mary Conway nominated George to serve his second year as the board’s leader. Director Angelo Giachetti nominated Browell. The yes votes for George came from himself and Conway, as well as Beverly Beal, Palmer Sabatine and Tom Vernon. Voting for Browell, besides herself and Giachetti, was Shirley Kefover.
Director Julia Ciarrocchi, attending the meeting after several months’ absence due to illness, arrived at the meeting after the vote for the presidency.
Giachetti was the lone nominee for vice president and got a unanimous nod.
Vernon commented that Browell was offered the vice presidency and turned it down.
Browell acknowledged that she rejected the offer, saying she wanted to be the board president and that she wanted to turn the district around.
Browell pointed out that she, Giachetti, Ciarrocchi and Kefover comprise a board minority.
“It’s a farce. The four of us are never on any committees. We never have a say. Why do we even bother coming? I think everyone on the board should have a chance to be officers,” Browell said.
Tensions continued through the regular business meeting that followed the reorganization, with the four “minority” board members voting no or passing on many of the items on the short agenda.
For example, the board, with five yes votes, agreed to install a privacy fence at the junior high school for a neighbor of the school, while Browell, Giachetti, Kefover and Ciarrocchi passed on voting.
Vernon made the motion, asking for 176 feet of fence at an estimated cost of about $2,000. Browell said the cost had been quoted at more like $4,000 at Tuesday’s work session. She said the board members should all look at the situation, noting trees may be a less expensive alternative.
When the vote was again split on paying the bills, Vernon commented that some board members pass every time on the bills.
“I don’t feel I’m part of the board, so I pass,” Browell said.
“You’re just being a big baby because you did not get president,” Beal said.
The four also opposed and sat out of an executive session that was called to discuss the selection of a half-time Access medical billing confidential employee. After the 15-minute session, Vernon made a motion to table the hiring.
Giachetti said outside of the executive session that part of the problem is he and the other three board members are not represented as chairmen of any of the committees, and they just want to be included. He said he accepted the vice president’s position for the sake of representing the “minority” board members.
On the other hand, Beal commented after the meeting that she was embarrassed “by the way the board conducted itself during the meeting in front of the public.”
Meanwhile, the board reappointed Davis & Davis attorneys as the district’s solicitor, with no change in retainer or rate.
They named Beal as a representative to the Fayette County Area Vocational-Technical School joint operating committee, Vernon as representative to the Southwest Regional Tax Bureau and Sabatine as the alternate. They also named Beal as legislative chairwoman to serve as the district’s contact on the Pennsylvania School Boards Association governmental relations committee and as the official representative, with Sabatine as alternate.
Regular business meetings will again be held the third Wednesday of each month at a new time of 6:30 p.m., with a work session the preceding Tuesday at 5 p.m.
Among other matters, Browell announced the school district is still accepting names of people who may serve on the action teams of the strategic planning committee. She said this is the chance for the public to speak up and be heard on what will happen in the school district in the next six years.