Candidate Biography / Introduction
My wife and I moved to Verona in 2015. In 2019 we welcomed our daughter into the world and in 2021 our son made our family complete! I currently work as the Director of Business Operations for a local manufacturer & distributor in Homestead and have previously served on the board at the PGH Equality Center in the role of Secretary. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Sciences and a Master’s Degree in IT Security Assurance, both from Robert Morris University.
I hope to use my professional and personal experiences to make the Penn Hills School District better for all the kids in our community, including my own. The reason I am running for School Board is for them. Looking at our academic ratings, it terrifies me to send my daughter to school here next year - and no parent in our district should have to feel that way. I want to make sure our kids get a good quality education here in the Penn Hills School District and will do everything in my power to make sure that happens. It is my hope that our teachers, students, parents, staff, and the community-at-large can work together with the Penn Hills School Board to make Penn Hills a safe and fun place for everyone to live and learn!
Candidate Priorities
When we first moved here, the school district was the last thing on our minds, but with our daughter entering Kindergarten next year and getting diagnosed as being Autistic in 2022, we wanted to make sure she gets the support she needs, along with a high-quality education. Looking at the test scores for the Penn Hills School District (currently ranked at the bottom 15% of all School Districts in Pennsylvania!) and hearing about all the financial issues over the years mixed with the annual property tax raises, we were ready to leave like so many other young families we know have left.
However, we were happily surprised to find that the elementary school has many support systems in place for a child like ours and that the schools have been designed in a way to separate out the grades, so it doesn’t seem so big and intimidating for little learners once inside. I was ready to go based on the problems, but now I'm ready to stay based on the promise that Penn Hills has for the future.
My top 5 goals with being on the school board are:
1) Communication
We need to have a culture of positive & transparent communication where we are open to fixing problems, trying solutions, and surveying results. Everyone should be able to freely bring up any concerns they have to the school board, feel heard, and see tangible results from their feedback.
2) Ratings
We need to improve our academic ratings overall so that Penn Hills is no longer seen as a district to be avoided, but as a great place for families to raise their kids to thrive socially, emotionally, and academically. See the Penn Hills School Data page for academic ratings details
3) Safety
Every teacher, staff member, and child should feel safe coming to school. That is sadly not the case today. We need to review our disciplinary models being used, make sure our teachers feel supported, and most importantly, make sure that children that do have disciplinary issues not only experience consequences but also have access to the help that they need to correct their problem behaviors (which I personally believe should include more parental involvement and/or an assigned mentor to help children learn appropriate behavior).
4) Community
I'd like for the School Board to work more with the community to add greater visibility to the programs offered here in Penn Hills and to partner more with the municipality, local non-profits, and local businesses. We also need to have more parental / community involvement. It takes a village to educate and grow a child and together, I am confident we can create a thriving & happy community where kids look forward to learning, parents can look forward to seeing tangible growth, and teachers can look forward to teaching in a safe and positive environment.
5) Financial Stability
We have the 2nd highest rate of taxes in Allegheny County out of 45 schools. We were classified as being in "Financial Recovery" and assigned monitoring by the state department due to past financial mismanagement with the new schools. Our finances have improved since then, and I will work to make sure we have financial stability going forward.
