UPDATES: There were NINE total candidates.

Paul Hayhurst Sr., Richard J. Kirsch, Dennis P. Lavelle, Bryan O'Black, Jerry Pantone, Fred Vella and former board member Laurencine Romack were the other people to apply for the vacancy, but no one nominated them.

Video added.

welcome back Nancy

It should be crystal clear that this board is afraid of bringing in new people. But the old gang of Schmotzer, Pry, Fischer, Kazour, and Nancy DiNardo is back together again, so I can’t wait to see what new and innovative ideas they initiate to move this district forward. A nice start would be broadcasting the board meetings, but I’m not holding my breath. The next time a seat opens up I hope the board has the courtesy to interview the applicants so they can at least receive some public recognition for their willingness to step up and serve the community. Hopefully there will be applicants the next time because the secret process established this time by John Schmotzer was an insulting slap in the face to those who took the time to apply, and will likely go a long way to discouraging future applicants.

Brian I would have to agree 100% with you on this one!
I have been sitting back and watching this process unfold for months. I think this is a big slap to the taxpayers -they voted for her husband and she comes back. Hmmm….
It was very confusing to me Nancy DiNardo was the only applicant dressed up, bible in hand, Judge ready to go and name plate in hand. I forgot to mention her computer password was active before she was nominated. Did the other applicants miss the memo? In her board comments she stated “It is nice to back in MY seat”. Hmmmmm…….. Was Sam holding it for her? For a minute I thought I was watching an episode of the “MOB WIFES.” Top the evening off was when John Schmotzer stated to the candidates “Please stay involved we have a lot of other areas you are needed” In other words-STAY away from this CLUB- you are not with the in crowd!

Watching the process unfold reminded me of middle school bulling. Instead of professional adults having intelligent conversation on the process it was hurry up and get it done before anyone knows what just happened. The most disturbing was watching the children’s faces that are seating on the board representing the next generation and this is what we teach them?
I think that each parent must be in charge of your own child’s education because 7 (who voted ND back in HER seat) board members ONLY cares about themselves how THEY look, NOT the children’s education or your tax dollars. From my view, HOLD ON BW…….welcome to higher taxes and it up to you to educate your own child.

I am very discouraged to hear what happened with this appointment. This board's creditably is on a downward spiral, I have to believe based on these events that this board is a tight band of friends what want to have it their way. I am glad that we Robert Healy there to provide us information and I would love to see the meetings broadcast for all to watch.

This stinks!

Bob, Thank you for reporting this news, now I know to whom to send an invitation to the B-W Council of PTA 44th Annual Founders' Day Dinner.

All this B-W school board process proves is that you have to be a Schmotzer ally to be appointed to the board. But the real problem is that the voters keep voting him and his followers into office. Too bad for the communities.

UPDATE: Quote from Mrs. DiNardo:

"It's good to be back," Sciulli DiNardo said on Wednesday. "Thank you very much for having me. Thank you for all those (board members) who voted for me.

"I think I've always been an advocate for children on this board. I've always been an advocate for accountability at the teacher level and at the administrative level, so thank you for welcoming me back. And I promise to continue to fight for those issues as well as for the issues that the residents of these three communities face."

Not surprised to see Nancy DiNardo back on the Schmotzer Board. Yes, it does look like her husband held her job while she off the board. Was her reason for stepping down before because she worked in Chelsa Wagner's office? Please, there should be some type of term limit so that others who WANT to serve and have the RIGHT to serve can do so. Yes, I guess now we will see our taxes go up in the district and it will be the same old same old. How long will Nancy be on the board before she steps down again only to have the husband come on board again and we repeat this process? And what was that little dance she did after being sworn in?

Where were all of you when the elections were held? Several people formed a committee apart from the current crew and not enough of the voters were willing to make a change. Seems people are surprised when the do the same thing over and over again only to get the same results. What was the platform for this current committee voted in? "Lower Taxes Better Education"...already we can strike one initiative off, our taxes are being raised, hold onto your wallets BW residents. It appears less than transparent when no interviews take place for an opening and ND comes ready to serve, name plate in hand and password all ready for her. Ya think they knew the result before it came to motion? Good people were ready and willing to volunteer their time, be trained to serve, put their names and reputations out there for the public and what did they receive in return? Disgusting lies sent to the community by the standing committee. Oh, by the way, did Mr. Rosing ever attend the weekend training for new school board members? Did the district pay for this and has he followed through or is he too, holding a seat for a returning member of the gang?

Welcome back Mrs.DiNardo! You were an excellent choice. I attended meetings when you were on the board prior,and feel you have always shown you are for the children and taxpayer. Bloggers say what you want about the woman, but she has proven she is her own person, has her own opinion, and is not afraid to speak her mind on issues. She is not a follower.

Steve, I agree with you. I'm glad Nancy DiNardo is back also. I can not believe how some of these people who blog say they care about children, but talk about other people and their families. What are THEY teaching children? At least Nancy has a record of pushing for children. What is everyone else's record? Maybe they don't know the history here, she has always advocated for financial accountability. You guys are pathetic.

Hello Janet,
Seeing your comment above makes me think you could not figure out the puzzle I left everyone on the last article. Here is another one for ya.....You should not call the kettle black. I really think you should re-read some of your comments. Maybe you should run for school board since you know all the answers. Sounds like your already in. I hope to see your name on the ballot in 2 years!

UPDATE: Sciulli DiNardo said that she resigned from the B-W School Board in 2010 to accept a position with the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas and that holding that common pleas position does not allow for her, by law, to be on a school board at the same time. She resigned from the court of common pleas at the end of December 2011, and as of Jan. 2, 2012, she has been an administrative director for Allegheny County Controller Chelsa Wagner. Sciulli DiNardo is allowed to serve, by law, on the school board and for the county controller at the same time, she said.

Depends. If Federal funds are in any way handled by Wagner's office, it is possible that DiNardo may not be able to run for re-election. Time will tell if anyone chooses to challenge her if she decides to run in 2 years. Or maybe her husband can run again, get elected, resign again, and Nancy could be re-appointed. What a country.

Janet

I don't know about that situation but the Hatch Act has prevented others from running. My comment was also meant to spur some interest in the shenanigans taking place in our communities to keep certain people in the political mix. I know that it did not happen exactly like this but we basically had a husband replace his wife on the board when she resigned only to be replaced by her when he resigned. There was one other prerson in that arrangment to keep it from looking too obvious but he was rewarded for his loyalty. It is as funny as a heart attack.

LJ, you are 100-percent correct that Mr. Winner, the school district's director of technology, said that Mrs. DiNardo was already in the system. However, Mary Ann Kraus, the board's secretary, said, "No, she's not."

You can read into that how you wish. Again, you are right that Winner said that DiNardo was in the system already. But Kraus said something different.

I don't like this process any more than anyone else, but the important question now is what will Nancy DiNardo do with 'her' seat? I know, since you have such large support on the board Nancy, you take the lead in getting the board meetings streamed live. John Schmotzer told the other applicants that he wanted them to stay involved, and there is no better way to encourage involvement then letting more people see exactly what happens at the meetings, what issues are discussed, etc. This increased accessibility is especially important now because of the looming budget issues. Most people probably don't realize that even with the proposed 1 mil tax increase the draft 12-13 budget requires $3.3 million from the fund balance. Is this really the right approach? Using the fund balance will prevent program cuts next year, but continued use of the fund balance will deplete these reserves, then what? How did we even get to this situation when recent pronouncements from the board said we in such good financial condition? These are complex issues and the board should be doing everything they can to make sure the public is fully informed and to encourage public input. Streaming the meetings is a no-brainer so just do it. No excuses.

I agree completely Brian, I think that streaming idea is great. That is something that this board should be doing and find other ways of getting the residents more involved. I personally would like to see some social media involved (beside video). Hearing the board discuss matters with the residents would great improve our district. I moved to this district because I liked the schools, I am very happy so far with them. I am nervous about Harrison though.

You all bring up great ideas, and I am still happy to see Mrs. DiNardo back on the board.Time will certainly tell

Lou, if you want to get a feel for the academics at Harrison click on District Report Card under Quick Links on the right side of the district home page, click on Report Card in the top right, then View 2011 Report Card. The report card shows good performance in reading and math from 6th through 8th grade, although there is a drop in science from the elementary schools. My big concern is a leveling off in reading and big drops in in science and math for the 11th grade scores. Is this an indication of problems at the high school? I don't know, but this is exactly the question this board needs to be continuously asking. Unfortunately, it's clear to me they will not do this on their own, so it's going to take pressure from everyone in the community to monitor the Report Card results and make this board, and the administration and teachers, accountable for the district performance. The Report Card results, by the way, are based on the PSSA test results, which are in turn used by the Pittsburgh Business Times to rank the 104 districts in SW PA. We can make all the DVD's we want about the district, but more and more people are using objective data such as the PSSA results and the PBT rankings to choose the school districts for their kids.

As an FYI, folks, I've learned that Nancy Sciulli DiNardo was "in the system" before she was appointed to the board on Jan. 18 because she had previously served on the board. Removing her from the online board voting process would have removed her voting history.

I will assume that Mr. Winner was referring to that instead of any collusion.

Bob - So this would apply to all others who have voted via the computer system but have left the board for whatever the reason? So, if someone wanted to fill out a Freedom of Information application, they could check on whether Stiffey, Romack, the other DiNardo and Palmiere are still in the system like Nancy. That would tell if this was a convenient aberration or not.