Choate Resigns, April Meeting Moved and Other B-W School Board Notes

Terry Choate Resigns

Whitehall Borough resident Terry Choate, who used public-comments time during a March 16 Baldwin-Whitehall School Board meeting to express his dissatisfaction with the cleanliness of district buses, has resigned from his position as an extra bus driver for the district.

The school board accepted his resignation, dated for Jan. 4, by an 8-1 vote at its meeting on Wednesday night. Board member Martin Michael Schmotzer dissented.

Choate said on March 16 that he is a 35-year administrator of transportation.

"I have never seen so many rules and regulations not followed at that (Baldwin-Whitehall) bus garage," Choate said. "You can't sweep bacteria out of a bus with a broom."

Following Choate's March 16 speech, board member Nancy Lee Crowder said that she expects district Superintendent Dr. Randal A. Lutz to address Choate's concerns over cleanliness. Crowder said that she has heard from many district drivers that they do not have adequate supplies to clean their buses.

April Meeting Moved

The board's members agreed to move their first meeting of April up by one day so that they can attend an Allegheny Intermediate Unit (AIU) Board meeting and annual dinner in which new AIU board members are elected.

Schmotzer suggested the rescheduling as a way for B-W's board members to converse with and learn from board members from other school districts.

"There's so many board members here that are not experienced," Schmotzer said. "It's evenings like that and opportunities like that that help you grow as a board member."

The next B-W Board meeting will now be held on Tuesday, April 2, at 7:30 p.m.

Baldwin Invite Sponsorship

The board accepted, by a 9-0 vote, the sponsorship of Elite Runners & Walkers for the district's 2013 Baldwin Invitational, a high school track & field meet.

The amount of the sponsorship was not discussed.

District Business Manager Mark R. Cherpak said that Elite Runners was the only company to submit a proposal for the sponsorship.

Four More Years of Kraus

By a 9-0 vote, the school board appointed Mary Ann Kraus to another four-year term as its secretary, effective July 1. Kraus retired from her full-time position as the district's administrative assistant to the superintendent at the end of 2012.

Student Awards

The school board recognized a number of district students on Wednesday for their recent accomplishments.

- Honored for earning Steel Center Area Vocational Technical School Extra Effort awards were Alex Maletto (advertising & design), Suzanna Powell (cosmetology), Dustin Pyeritz (electrical construction), Lee Crowder (protective services) and Adam Grosse (heating, ventilation and air conditioning).

- Honored for earning Steel Center SkillsUSA district competition awards were Shannon Blanc (commercial baking, second place), Michael Lynch (diesel technology, third place) and Anthony Sendro (electrical construction, third place).

- Honored for earning the rank of Eagle Scout at Boy Scouts Troop 210 in Whitehall was Brian Stoyanoff.

- Honored for earning a $1,500 scholarship via an honorable mention award at a recent Pittsburgh Technical Institute Visions and Voices competition was Alicia Mastroianni.

- Honored for participating in a recent Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) Elementary Singfest were Avery Greenaway, Morgan Traud and Jacob Vallus.

- Honored for participating in a PMEA junior district chorus were Maggie Hines, Katelyn Ryan, Stevie Kisty and David Wilhelm.

- Honored for participating in a recent mock trial event were Jamie Colisimo, Maura Kay, Stephanie Bott, Mark Demore, Luke Dowker, Daniel McTiernan, Andrew Pryor, Caroline Witt, Dan Goga, Jake Gruber, Nigel Armbruster and student board representative Jaclyn Sirc.

B-W School Board Splits Vote Over Groundskeeper Position

Read here.

Read through other Baldwin-Whitehall School Board items here.

 ---

Follow the Baldwin-Whitehall Patch on Facebook and Twitter.

Sign up for the (free) daily Baldwin-Whitehall newsletter.