Laurencine Romack and Sabatino DiNardo Jr. Appointed to Baldwin-Whitehall School Board

The Baldwin-Whitehall school board held a regularly scheduled agenda meeting at the  on Feb. 2, though, atypically, the board also voted on four items to begin the meeting, including two motions to appoint new board members.

Motions to appoint Laurencine Romack and Sabatino DiNardo Jr. to the board (in that order) both passed after the board accepted the resignations of John Palmiere and John Egger (also in that order).

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DiNardo is the husband of former Baldwin-Whitehall school board member Nancy Sciulli DiNardo, whose resignation for personal reasons in September 2010 opened a place for Palmiere to fill Sciulli DiNardo's seat the next month. Sabatino DiNardo now technically fills Egger's seat.

Six people filed paperwork in time to be considered for either of the B-W school board's vacancies, though one of those six did not appear for – Greg Zeaman. Zeaman was still considered for the vacancies, though.

Those that did appear for interviews were (in order) Sabatino DiNardo, Paul Hayhurst Sr., Bryan O'Black, Romack and Fred Vella.

O'Black was the only other candidate to be motioned for appointment on Feb. 2. Unfortunately for O'Black, Romack was motioned for before him for the first vacant seat (Palmiere's). Romack then received five positive votes from the then-seven-member board (one more than the minimum required). Baldwin Borough District Magistrate John Bova then swore her in.

Martin Michael Schmotzer was the board member to motion for Romack. After another member of the board seconded his motion, Nancy Lee Crowder and Kevin A. Stiffey became the only board members to vote nay for her appointment. Crowder is the one who motioned for O'Black's appointment.

After Romack filled Palmiere's seat, the then-eight-member board entertained motions to fill Egger's seat.

Board First Vice President Kevin J. Fischer motioned for Sabatino DiNardo's appointment to fill that seat – and another board member seconded his motion – before Crowder again motioned for O'Black.

DiNardo (typo: previously read as Romack) then received five positive votes from the then-eight-member board (the exact minimum).

Bova swore him in as well.

Crowder and Stiffey voted nay on the DiNardo motion as well, and new board member Romack abstained.

Fischer did not attend the board's interview sessions on Feb. 1, though he still voted aye on both motions to fill vacant board seats.

Board President George L. Pry said that Fischer had the ability to review the candidates' resumes and to speak with other board members in order to inform his decisions for Feb. 2.

The B-W school board now consists of a full nine members again – Romack, Sabatino DiNardo, Martin Michael Schmotzer, John B. Schmotzer, Crowder, Stiffey, Second Vice President Diana Kazour, Fischer and Pry.

Pry invited members of the audience to speak before the board did any voting on Feb. 2, though no one accepted the offer.

After Romack and Sabatino DiNardo accepted their seats, the board conducted its usual agenda-meeting routine, listening to presentations and discussing agenda items to vote on at the next regular school-board meeting. The next regular meeting will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 9, at the school-district office at 7:30 p.m. The Baldwin-Whitehall Patch will report notes from that meeting.

Romack, 42 and residing on Range Drive in the , is a homemaker and a former teacher for Pittsburgh Public Schools. Romack said that she taught for Pittsburgh from 1992 to 1994. After that, she worked as a substitute teacher in the state of Indiana when she lived there with her husband for six years.

Romack is the mother of three children and has been involved with parent-teacher groups in the Baldwin-Whitehall school district for the past 10 years. She is the Parent-Teacher Association President at and the Parent-Teacher Organization President for the combined and elementary schools group.

Sabatino DiNardo, who goes by "Sam," is 46 and resides at Page Drive in Baldwin Borough. He is Finance Secretary for Amalgamated Transit Union Local 85. He has been an officer of the union for 12 years, he said.

"I take care of the pension plan and the health care for everyone who works at the Port Authority," he said. "Those are my members – all the bus drivers, trolley operators, the service people."

The DiNardos have three children.

The Feb. 2 agenda meeting adjourned at 9:36 p.m.