[naviga:h3]Name: Frank Borrelli[/naviga:h3]

Residence: Sarver

Education: BS in fire protection engineering, University of Maryland

Occupation: Senior consultant specialist, AIG Property Insurance

Family: Wife, Toni; children Theresa, Timothy and Taylor

[naviga:h3]Name: Melanie Bollinger[/naviga:h3]

Residence: Buffalo Township

Education: BS in biology, Clarion University

Occupation: Special needs caretaker

Family: Husband, Bo; three children, Sydney, 16, Joshua, 13, and Jacob, 10.

[naviga:h3]Name: Mark Shoaf[/naviga:h3]

Residence: Buffalo Township

Education: M.A. from Waynesburg University, M.A. from Indiana (Pa.) University, B.S. from Clarion University

Occupation: Licensed professional counselor, counseling psychologist

Family: Wife, Holly; son, Evan; and daughter, Megan

[naviga:h3]Name: Barbara Toy-Gaydos[/naviga:h3]

Residence: Buffalo Township

Education: Freeport High School graduate; attended Indiana (Pa.) University

Occupation: Clerical work

Family: Husband, John; four grown children and a grandson

[naviga:h3]Name: Michael Huth[/naviga:h3]

No response

Name: Frank Prazenica

No response

QUESTION: Why are you running for office?

BORRELLI: Not having any family working for the Freeport School District, my allegiance is with the taxpayers of the district, specifically families having children in it.

I want to continue my effort in improving academic curriculum, safety and security while providing a learning environment that allows students to excel and be better prepared for college or further learning entities.

BOLLINGER: I am running because I believe in quality public education. I feel every child is entitled to get the best education possible. We need to keep values, morals and integrity intact within our school system.

I want to be the voice not only for my children but the other children who are currently in the Freeport School District and future students.

SHOAF: I have been involved in public service pretty much all of my life. I want to continue to serve the community I grew up in and where I have raised my family to maintain quality education and a culture of caring.

TOY-GAYDOS: I am running for the school board because there are some unfinished projects that I want to see finished. And I want to continue to help our students receive the best education that they can.

QUESTION: What do you consider the pressing matters facing your school district? How would you address them?

BORRELLI: I believe the pressing factors (though not limited to), are financial operations with the state impasse of school budgets, the compliance to Common Core standards when our district has such a high rating, and the federal lunch nutrition regulations.

With real life experience in operational financing, I oppose frivolous spending and issuance of pay hikes for less than stellar performance. I believe nutrition can improve through innovative food processing and preparation without altering turkey and biscuits.

BOLLINGER: Education comes first in the school district. We need to make sure our students are getting a good quality education that includes having the tools they need to cope with life situations after graduating. We want to give the students skills necessary to reach their goals in life.

Whatever the pressing matters that we face within the district, we need to look at what the actual problem is and find a real solution.

The school board has to work as a team in order to accomplish this.

SHOAF: Districts are facing safety risks to our kids like never before. Promoting a safe environment requires more than just arming someone to patrol our schools. We need to redefine what it means to have a safe environment and what all threatens us. The school violence we have seen has all been mental health issues but rather than taking proactive measures we have taken reactive ones. Promote awareness and resources.

TOY-GAYDOS: The most pressing issue with every school board right now is budgeting and lack of funding. Our state legislators and governor are not doing their jobs, and all school districts are in financial limbo right now. School boards should have our state's cooperation, not the cold shoulder.