Latest news with #ErieSchoolBoard
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
6 Erie County school districts had primary election races. 7 will have races in November
A number of local school districts had contested races for school board nominations in the May 20 municipal primary. There will be races again in November in the Erie, General McLane, Girard, Iroquois, North East and Northwestern school districts, according to unofficial election results. Seeking four seats available on the Erie School Board this fall will be incumbents Jay Breneman and Zakaria Sharif plus Leah Merski, former school director Gary Horton and Hayan Aloush. Merski, Breneman, Horton and Sharif won Democratic nominations with 5,851, 5,419, 5,378 and 3,906 votes, respectively. Failing to win Democratic nominations were Danielle Randall with 3,691 votes, Tony Quinn with 2,614, Tywonn Taylor with 2,266 and Aloush with 1,078. Republican nominations went to Merski, Horton, Sharif and Aloush, with 1,924, 1,140, 1,028 and 802 votes, respectively. Taylor failed to win a Republican nomination with 714 votes. Erie mayoral race: Daria Devlin stuns two-term incumbent Joe Schember to win Democratic primary Incumbent school directors Jason Halfast, Joe Frisina, Amy Allen and Richard Farver won nominations for re-election in both parties. Challenger Andrea Chelton failed to win a nomination. In Democratic balloting, Halfast led with 315 votes followed by Farver, 306; Allen, 291; Frisina, 236; and Chelton, 202. On the Republican ballot, Halfast led again with 522 votes. Allen had 489, Farver 469, and Frisina, 386, to win nominations. Chelton trailed with 349 votes. Two candidates for a four-year at-large seat on the school board will face each other again in November. Donald Ickes won the Democratic nomination with 836 votes to 422 for Mark Kernick. Kernick won the Republican nomination with 596 votes to 530 for Ickes. The only other contest in the district was for a Region 3 seat on the board. George Roberts won the nomination in both parties with 179 Democratic votes and 126 Republican votes to 164 and 59 votes, respectively, for Brad Pattullo. Incumbent school directors Mike McConnell and Joseph Legnasky plus Chris McNally, Daniel Maher and Jason Bax will vie for four four-year seats on the Girard School Board in November. Democratic nominations went to McConnell, 587 votes; McNally, 566; Maher, 529; and Legnasky, 433. Bax trailed with 421 votes. Republican nominations went to McConnell, McNally, Maher and Jason Bax, with 565, 535, 516 and 401 votes, respectively. Legnasky trailed with 374 votes. There were no races for party nominations for Iroquois School Board, but there will be a race this fall as incumbents Andrew Jackula, Michael King and Rita Nicolussi face challengers Lucia Conti and Jake Wilder for four board seats. Conti, Nicolussi, Jackula and Wilder won Democratic nominations with 503, 484, 465 and 453 votes, respectively. Jackula, with 244 votes, King, with 223, and Nicolussi, with 221, won Republican nominations. Incumbent school directors Jane Blystone, Corrie Boyd and Alene Rohde and challengers Ginny Schwartz, Amanda Steeneck and Neil McCord will contend for four-year terms on the North East School Board in November. Democrats nominated Blystone with 442 votes, Boyd with 430, Schwartz with 402 and Rohde with 378. Failing to win Democratic nominations were Dominic Gardunio with 336 votes and Steeneck with 290. Republican nominations went to McCord with 687 votes, Boyd with 649, Steeneck with 553 and Blystone with 491. Failing to win Republican nominations were Schwartz with 272 votes and Gardunio with 176. Democratic nominations for Northwestern School Board went to Heather Fawcett with 475 votes, incumbent Mark Swanson with 450, Jennifer Kumar with 340 and another incumbent, Becky Mikovch, with 313. Courtney Roberts, with 244 votes, and Bre Haycock, with 138, failed to win Democratic nominations. Republican nominations went to Fawcett with 547 votes, Swanson with 533, Mikovch with 486 and Dan Peppers with 365. Kumar, with 316 votes, Roberts with 296 and Haycock with 167 did not win Republican nominations. Squaring off in November will be Fawcett, Swanson, Mikovch, Kumar and Peppers, for four available board seats. Contact Valerie Myers at vmyers@ This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Voters pick the winners in contested Erie area school board races
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Who are the candidates for city of Erie, county races in the May primary?
Tuesday was the filing deadline for candidates planning to run in the May 20 municipal primary. The filing of nominating petitions helps bring into focus what the ballot will look like when voters head to the polls. There are dozens of races in Erie County this year, including contests for Erie mayor; county executive; city council; county council; county judge; controller; sheriff; and clerk of records. Here are some of the marquee races. In the race for Erie mayor, three Democrats — incumbent Joe Schember, who is seeking a third four-year term, current Erie School Board member Daria Devlin and Sheila Woeger, a retired substitute teacher — submitted petitions and will be on the ballot in May. There are two Republicans who filed nominating petitions: Matthew S. Thomas and Thomas Kinem. Further, local public transit advocate Julie Minich has announced she plans to run for mayor as an independent. She will not be on the May primary ballot, but Minich intends to be on the ballot for the Nov. 4 municipal election. Please enable Javascript to view this content. The primary winner will be a huge favorite in the November municipal election because of the city's more than 2-1 Democratic voter registration edge. No Republican has been elected mayor of Erie since Charles Williamson in 1961. Four seats are on the ballot in the Erie City Council race, which will yield at least two new faces on the seven-member panel in 2026. That is because council member Chuck Nelson and current council President Mel Witherspoon, both Democrats, are not seeking new four-year terms. Nelson is seeking the Democratic nomination for city controller in the primary. Witherspoon was appointed in January 2024 to the seat vacated by the January 2023 resignation of former Councilwoman Liz Allen, and that seat is on the ballot. But Witherspoon told the Erie Times-News in January that he will not launch a campaign. Two other current council members, Democrats Jasmine Flores and Maurice Troop, submitted nominating petitions and are seeking re-election. Both were first elected in 2021 and are seeking their second four-year terms on the panel. Other Democrats who submitted petitions in the City Council race are Erie County Councilman Andre Horton, who cannot see re-election to County Council because of county term limit rules; Deonte Cooley; Marilyn Pol, a former deputy city clerk; and Darrel Vandeveld. Four Republican City Council candidates submitted petitions: Anita Fay; Yvet Anderson; Kimberly Hunter; and Tina Hiotis. The significant Democratic voter registration edge in the city will likely be a factor in the City Council race as well. No Republican has served on City Council since John Evans, a CPA and certified financial planner, did so as an appointee between June 2012 and December 2013. Evans had been the first Republican to serve on City Council since Denise Robison, who took office in 1990 and was the last GOP candidate elected to City Council. Brandon Penn, president of the Apartment Association of Northwestern Pennsylvania, has announced plans to run for City Council as an independent. He will not be on the May primary ballot but is seeking a ballot slot in November. Besides Nelson, the race for the Democratic nomination for city controller includes Nelson's council colleague Ed Brzezinski and former Erie County government employee Brooke Sanfilippo. All have submitted nominating petitions. Republican Matt Strupczewski has also filed nominating petitions in the controller's race. In the race for Erie County executive, Republican incumbent Brenton Davis filed a nominating petition to run for a second four-year term. No other GOP candidate will oppose Davis in the primary. On the Democratic side, Perry Wood, who serves as executive director of the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority, and Christine Vogel, Donatos Pizza franchise owner, both filed petitions for county executive. In the race for Erie County Council, three seats will be on the May ballot. The 2nd District seat will be up for grabs, as incumbent Democratic Councilman Andre Horton, who's serving his third term, is term-limited and cannot run again. Democrats Jim Wertz, former Erie County Democratic Party chairman, and James DePalma both filed petitions for the seat. Republican Renee Vendetti also filed a petition for the seat. For the 4th District seat, Democratic incumbent Jim Winarski filed a petition to run for reelection. He'll face challenges from Democrats Michael Keys, Kevin Pastewka, Carl Anderson and Marcus Jacobs. For the 6th District seat, Republican incumbent Charlie Bayle filed a petition to run for a second term. He'll face a challenge by Republican Scott Rastetter, who held the seat prior to Bayle. Four school board seats are on the ballot. Two current Erie School Board members are seeking re-election to four-year terms: Jay Breneman and Zakaria Sharif. Others who filed nominating petitions include Danielle Randall; Gary Horton; Hayan Aloush; Tywonn Taylor and Anthony 'Tony' Quinn. One seat on the Erie County Court of Common Pleas is up for election this year. Three candidates will compete for that spot, including Leigh Ann Orton, a Republican from North East who ran in 2023 and who is now the first assistant solicitor for Erie County. The other candidates who have announced are Jeremy Lightner, one of two chief deputy district attorneys for Erie County, and Emily Mosco Merski, an Erie lawyer in private practice and a part-time assistant public defender for the county. Contact Kevin Flowers at kflowers@ Follow him on X at @ETNflowers. A.J. Rao can be reached at arao@ Follow him on X @ETNRao. This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Who's running for city of Erie, county races in the May primary?
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Nashville educator selected to lead Erie's public schools as next superintendent
Erie School Board has announced the selection of Natalyn Gibbs as Erie School District superintendent effective July 1. The board will meet in special session to vote on the selection Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. at the district administration building, 1910 Sassafras St. Gibbs will transition into the position beginning April 1, according to the Friday afternoon announcement on the district's ParentSquare app. District staff also were informed of Gibbs' selection Friday. "She will work closely with Superintendent Brian Polito and the district leaders to visit schools, connect with the people who make our schools strong, and listen to the hopes and concerns of our community," according to the announcement signed by School Board President Jay Breneman. Polito will retire as superintendent June 30. He has been named the first executive director of the Erie CRIZ Authority. Moving on: Erie's CRIZ hires first executive director, Brian Polito Gibbs is executive director of schools and associate superintendent of Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, Nashville, Tennessee. She was named as one of three finalists for the Erie School District leadership post in January. She was introduced to the community during a public forum on Feb. 6. Gibbs' selection follows a national search for the district's next superintendent. "Throughout the search we gathered input from across Erie's schools and neighborhoods through surveys, focus groups and conversations," Breneman said in the ParentSquare post. "We heard you: Families want safe, welcoming schools that set every student up for success. That starts with strong leadership, clear communications, and the right resources. Dr. Gibbs will work alongside educators, district teams and community partners to continue strengthening our schools and supporting every student." Watch it: Erie schools superintendent finalists' forums with Briggs, Szumigala, Gibbs Contact Valerie Myers at vmyers@ This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Gibbs to succeed Polito as Erie schools superintendent
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ed Brzezinski enters race for city controller
Another current member of Erie City Council has announced that they're running for city controller. Ed Brzezinski is seeking the Democratic nomination for city controller in the spring primary election. Brooke Sanfilippo announces bid for city controller Brzezinski has spent 12 years on the Erie School Board along with two full eight-year terms on city council. If he wins this race, his third term on city council would be cut short and his seat would be vacated. Chuck Nelson announces run for Erie City Controller 'I think the city is, and I think everybody knows, is at a critical juncture. There's going to be a lot of things that are happening and a lot things that are not happening. ARPA money is going to be running out. It's going to be a time where experience is going to be a major factor in the things that we do. That's basically why I'm throwing my hat in there,' said Brzezinski. Brzezinski's challengers for the position are Erie resident Brooke Sanfilippo and fellow city council member Chuck Nelson. They'll be seeking the Democratic bid in May. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Erie School Board discusses how to make up snow days from Black Friday snowstorm
A snowy winter has left the Erie School Board with four school days to makeup, and Wednesday night the discussion started as to what days students and teachers will be back in the classroom. Erie's Public Schools students likely rejoiced when a massive snowstorm gave them four extra days off school following their Thanksgiving break. But what goes up must come down, and now school officials are starting to discuss which days the students will have to make up. 'Tonight, we did propose to the school board that we make those up with four flexible instruction days where students will be able to learn from home asynchronously. That's going to be on the agenda for next week,' said Brian Polito, Erie's Public Schools superintendent. City of Erie Streets Dept. introduces 'pothole hotline' to help clean up winter damage The assistant superintendent proposed students return for flexible instruction during scheduled teacher in-service days in February, March and May. The plan also proposed that June 9 be added at the end of the school year for the final snow-make-up day. Polito said teachers will also have to come in for an additional four days for professional development on June 10-13. Erie Public Schools like Erie High School missed four days in December due to that heavy snowfall, but deciding which days to make up isn't always an easy thing to do. Protective cover being placed over U.S. Brig Niagara to avoid weather damage 'It's always a tough decision. We were kind of taken off guard by the snowstorm that had hit on Thanksgiving. The students were actually home the week of Thanksgiving so we were not prepared to have them do asynchronous. We did not send them home with work or devices,' said Polito. Polito said ideally they would have done flexible instruction days during the storm, but one way or another the schools have to be open for 180 days a year. Erie School Board will vote to approve or deny the snow make-up days at next week's school board meeting. In other business, Erie's Public Schools search for a superintendent continues with the last of the three finalists set to do her public forum session Thursday night. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
