5 vie for 4 seats on Butler School Board
Three Butler School Board directors, a former director and a challenger are running for party nominations for four positions on the board in the May 18 primary.
Board members Alvin Vavro, Gary Shingleton and John Conrad, former board member Nina Teff and challenger Regenold Griffin are running for the four open seats on the board. Incumbent Alice Nunes is not running for reelection.
Conrad, an engineer for Westinghouse, is running for his fifth term. His name will appear on the Republican ballot only.He said several board members have backgrounds in education, which is a good thing, but people from other walks of life can bring valuable insight to the board.“I bring to the board a more technical, more logical way of thinking,” Conrad said.He said he supports the plan to eventually close the middle school and reorganize the other grades and schools.The middle school is more than 100 years old and would probably be the most expensive school in the district to update, and the building isn't needed because of declining enrollment in the district, he said.Enrollment peaked in 1971, when 1,100 students comprised the graduating class, he said. Recent graduating classes have had about 500 students.“Enrollment is declining,” Conrad said. “The bottom line is the student population is declining because people are having fewer kids than they used to, not because people are moving out. We don't need the facilities we used to have.”He said he opposed the 2015 consolidation plan that resulted in the closing of Broad Street Elementary School and favors implementing the reorganization plan that is under consideration.The board recently voted to reopen Broad Street Elementary School for the 2021-22 school year.Conrad also said he supports Superintendent Brian White, calling him “a great problem-solver.” He said White uses logic rather than emotion in making decisions and recommendations.
Vavro, the current board president, graduated from Butler High School, worked as a teacher and principal in the district for 36 years and worked for another district for a year. He was the principal of Northwest Elementary School when he retired in 2009.After working in other jobs after retiring, he returned to the classroom and is working as a substitute teacher in Armstrong County.He is running for his third term on the board and his name will appear on both party ballots.Teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic has given him a direct view of the unprecedented impacts COVID-19 has on education, he said.“I bring that perspective to the board,” Vavro said.Board members have different backgrounds that are beneficial for decisions, which often require them to “walk a tight rope” between what's best for students and district finances, he said.“My heart has always been with kids,” Vavro said. “I want kids to be successful. We provide quality education and try to do what's best for taxpayers.”He said he does not micromanage employees, and believes White and other administrators do a good job of running the district.“We pay our administrators to be the leaders and help make decisions and make recommendations to the board,” Vavro said. “I think the purpose of the board is to support kids and parents and protect taxpayers.”He commended the administration for preparing the recently adopted 2021-22 budget with no tax increase. Avoiding a tax increase is important because of the high number of senior citizens in the district and the economic hardships caused by COVID-19.Vavro said he supports closing the middle school because it would cost too much money to renovate the building to meet current standards, and commends White for surveying residents to get input for the school reorganization plan.He said he has some concerns about placing the fifth grade in elementary schools, but believes the plan will work. He said he also supports the reopening of Broad Street Elementary in the fall.“I want to see as much of our money as possible spent on educating kids instead of renovating buildings,” Vavro said.
Shingleton, a Butler High School alumnus, parent of two graduates and retired district high school teacher and coach, is running for his second term on the board. His name will appear on both party ballots.“I have been associated with this school district for a half of a century,” Shingleton said. “If I were to say this district means an awful lot to me, it would be an understatement. I owe this a great deal. The home I reside in, the success of my three children, the standard of living that I now enjoy are the result of my association with this district.”He said he wants all students to be able to read with accuracy and comprehension by the end of third grade, receive rigorous academic plans, participate as engaged citizens and to have an opportunity to create portfolios for career paths.The pandemic placed stumbling blocks in the path toward achieving district goals, but Shingleton said he will continue to pursue those goals. These include aligning professional staff and community resources with the Emily Brittain Community Partnership and Demonstration School to meet students' needs, and allowing secondary students and teachers to use Butler County Community College to assimilate students to an advanced education atmosphere.Shingleton also said White is “second to none when it comes to problem solving,” and commended him for gathering staff and community input for projects.He has a bachelor's degree in secondary education in social studies from Slippery Rock University and a master's degree in labor relations and personnel administration from St. Francis University.He was a teacher from 1979 to 2013, including eight years as a department chairman; coached boys and girls basketball, baseball and golf; has worked as an NCAA college baseball umpire since 1985; and is a past president of the Chesapeake Basin College Baseball Umpires Association.Shingleton said he also worked in collective bargaining with the Butler Education Association when he was a teacher.He has been married for 38 years and has three grown children.
Griffin, of Lyndora, a former U.S. Marine who runs a nonprofit organization that strives to help men be good fathers and has collected donations of technology equipment for district schools, will appear on both party ballots.Through his nonprofit, FATHR, he said he works with veterans to help them with parenthood and has collected donations of cameras and computer accessories for schools in the district. He said he also collected new and gently used winter coats and distributed them.If elected, Griffin said he would work to ensure the district is providing the best education possible to students, and make sure no students get overlooked in the school system.He said he believes he is the first Black candidate to run for the board and is honored by that distinction, but he is not focusing on it.“I don't care if your kids are plaid,” Griffin said. “They need the best education we can provide for them. It's not always the big things that cause the most damage. Sometimes it's the little cracks, and I don't want these kids to fall through any of them.”He said his daughter, Luvenia, is a fifth-grade student in the district.Griffin said he believes in preparing students for the future. District students have the opportunity to attend the Butler County Vocational-Technical School, which Griffin said is one of the best career training schools for high school students in the country. He called the vo-tech “top notch.”He said he understands the reasons for closing the middle school, but he doesn't want any of the hundreds of students who go there to get lost in the shuffle or not get the attention they need at their new schools.
Teff, of Renfrew, a former petroleum engineer, served on the board as president from 2015-2019.She said she didn't win a nomination in the primary for a second term, but good people were elected. A registered Republican, Teff said her name will appear on both party ballots in the upcoming primary.“In my first four years, we really had brought about some real positive changes on the board,” Teff said.The board became more focused on district finances, strategic planning and staff development and training, and hired White as superintendent, she said.She said the board improved collaboration between the district, staff, students, the community and businesses.“I thought we were moving in the right direction, and I want to see that through,” Teff said.In her first election, she said she ran because she was among many residents who were not pleased with the 2015 consolidation plan.“The community tried to speak out, but the board and administration didn't want to work with us,” Teff said.She said she supports the plan to close the middle school and reorganize the other schools that were developed during her last year on the board. The plan was recommended by a group made up of residents, teachers, administrators and board members, she said.If elected, she said she would work to help the board continue making progress.“I just want excellence in our education system for our kids,” Teff said.She said she worked for Shell Oil for 16 years, but is now a stay-at-home mother.
