Three seek Keystone Central School Board seat

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LOCK HAVEN - Teacher, administrator, secretary ... These represent critical players in the daily operations of schools and school districts.

So it was that a former school teacher, former school superintendent and former school secretary, all retired, represented a surplus of riches for the Keystone Central School Board Tuesday evening, as the members pondered which of three highly qualified candidates will be chosen to fill a vacant school board seat.

The wealth of experience represented by the two men and one woman- Thomas E. Muir, Wayne A. Koch and Norma Miller - almost certainly made the task more difficult, and in the end the board members decided to withhold their decision from the public until they take official action at the regular board meeting next Tuesday.

Whoever the successful candidate is, he or she will be representing Region I - Loganton Borough and Greene, Logan and Porter townships - by filling the remaining term of Deb Nicholas, who announced her resignation as school director effective May 31.

Nicholas, who served nine and a half years on the board, has two and a half years remaining on her term of office.

By law, the board had 30 days from the official acceptance of her resignation to name a successor.

The successor will join board members Jack Peters, Thomas Shafer, William Smith, Patrick Johnson, Daniel Brooks, Deb Nicholas, Jeff Snyder and James Knauff and Jerry J. Swope. Of these, Smith and Johnson are serving in their first terms and Knauff and Swope are filling the unexpired terms of other board members who have resigned.

After the interviews and before the board entered an executive session, several board members said they were impressed with the strength of the qualifications displayed by the three candidates, who had strong backgrounds in public service, profession and education.

Each of the three brought wide and varied experiences, much of it within school systems, and all three had strong local connections with the community with which they desired to represent.

n Norma Miller served from 1973 to 2007 in Keystone Central as a secretary. Her highest position was administrative assistant to the superintendent, where she was responsible for board agendas, reports, personnel, job fair, unemployment claims and correspondence.

She is retired, and spends her time as a volunteer at Lock Haven Hospital, Mill Hall Elementary School, a trustee for the Lamar United Methodist Church, and a member of Senior Circle, Beta Sigma Phi sorority and many other pursuits.

n Wayne A. Koch, a retired public school teacher with 35 years of teaching social studies at the high school level, was last employed at Bellefonte Area High School until his retirement in 1999. He's been a Loganton resident for 22 years, and has served as a member and chairperson of the Loganton Planning Commission and as president of Loganton Borough Council.

He also brings some singing talents to the fore, as a member of the Lock Haven Community Chorus and several barbershop groups. Koch also has background in the Pennsylvania State Educators Association, and has served in many capacities as an officer at local and state level. He is a product of several districts that eventually became Keystone Central.

n Thomas E. Muir, a 14-year resident of Porter Township, served four years as a Keystone Central School District Superintendent, but also has experience in education as a teacher, coach and principal. He most recently served as an administrator for Juniata County School District until his retirement in 2006. He also taught as secondary English teacher in Bellefonte Area School District for eight years, and has held numerous administrative post in other sections of the state.

Locally, he has served with the Clinton and Lycoming Counties STEP Board, the Heisey Museum Board, the Clinton County Economic Partnership and Lock Haven Rotary, among other civic responsibilities.

Aside from the board members and Interim Superintendent Dr. John DiNunzio, it was Muir who asked one of the more interesting questions. When asked by DiNunzio if he had any questions for the board, Muir replied, "What are you looking for in a school board member?"

The answers offered a small glimpse into the minds of the directors as they approached the selection process behind closed doors last evening.

"Somebody who can listen to all the facts and make a decision based on that," Butch Knauff said, "and then accept the decision that was made regardless of whether he was for or against it, and become a part of the decision."

"I'd like the person to be open minded," Board President Jack Peters said. "He or she needs to be a problem solver."

"You seem sincere and you have strong values," Thomas Shafer said. "Students come first."

"Pro-education," Jeff Snyder said "Commitment. The biggest challenge we face is just being prepared for the next challenge. Sometimes they come along one after another, and you have to be ready for that."

"Keeping to the main thing is the main thing," Dan Brooks replied. "One of the greatest challenges we face is learning to avoid the rabbit trails because they can destroy us."