3 Uniontown school board candidates oppose lawsuit
Holt
Grahek
Clay
George
The following is the first in a three-part series on the race for Uniontown Area School Board.
Three candidates for one of the five four-year seats on the Uniontown Area School Board disagree with a potential class-action lawsuit against the state asking for an equitable distribution of education funding.
Directors in several area school districts have discussed the possibility of a lawsuit that would seek to recoup some state funding they say is not fairly distributed among school districts in the state. According to school officials, some low-income districts received the biggest losses in funding this year.
“I am never in favor of a lawsuit. No one ever really wins in a lawsuit,” said candidate Dorothy Grahek, an employee of Uniontown Orthodontics who previously served on the board for 12 years.
Democrat challenger Grahek, Republican incumbent Philip Holt and incumbent Thomas R. George Sr. and challenger Susan Clay, who both cross-filed, spoke about the issue during a recent candidates forum of the HeraldStandard.com editorial board.
“By filing a lawsuit, you are just spending more money and energy,” said Clay, who also served on the board previously for 20 years. Clay suggested organizing a school summit involving legislators and the governor which she believes would have more impact. “I don’t think the governor fully understands what local districts are dealing with.”
Holt, a business owner in the Farmington area, also opposes a lawsuit. George, a retired educator for 40 years in the Laurel Highlands School District who held several positions in the district, said he would favor the lawsuit if it would mean that the state would reimburse school districts for equal education funding across the state.
The candidates also gave their thoughts about communicating with those presenting questions and concerns during public meetings.
“Sometimes I don’t have the answer, so I basically don’t comment,” Holt said. “But I listen. Then I spend my time finding the answer.”
Clay said oftentimes board meetings are the only opportunity the public will have to ask questions or express concerns about items on the agenda.
“The board is only in power when they are sitting at that table,” she said. “You don’t always have the answers there. But if you have an answer, give it to them.”
Also seeking one of the five four-year seats on the school board in the Nov. 8 election are incumbents Kenneth G. Meadows and Vincent Winfrey Sr., who are both running on the Republican and Democratic ticket.
See the related video of Uniontown’s candidate forum at HeraldStandard.com.