By JOSHUA THOMAS

C-S-E Editor

ST. JOHNSVILLE — On Tuesday night, a large crowd attended a Meet the Candidates event at the St. Johnsville Jr./Sr. High School Auditorium. The event, held by the Oppenheim-Ephratah and St. Johnsville teachers associations, was projected live for public viewing to the Oppenheim-Ephratah School cafetorium.

The roughly 90 minute event gave 11 of the 14 candidates (Darren Bellen, Patricia Christensen and Glen Blanchard were absent from the event, each having a prior engagement) the chance to answer randomly selected questions, including inquiries regarding whether candidates have been associated with children in a professional or personal capacity, whether they'd be willing to approve construction projects to facilitate BOCES classrooms, and their vision for the future of the district.

After each question was posed, the following three candidates in order from left to right, were given the opportunity to answer. After the three answers were received, with each candidate allowed two minutes to respond, a new question was asked. Each present candidate answered three questions before being allowed the opportunity to give a non-timed closing statement.

In those statements, candidates were allowed to say anything, and were invited to add their thoughts to the questions they weren't given the opportunity to answer.

During those final statements, Cindy Breh, a "proud member of the OECS Board", noted that she's made lasting friendships in St. Johnsville, and thanked the district for allowing OE students to play sports this year, stating, "without you, they probably wouldn't be playing." Addressing education, she stated, "We should, as a board, make sure our students are college ready," explaining that programming should be a priority. Speaking about the merged district's finances, Breh said, "I think we should stay in line with the merger study," which suggests applying new state aid equally to the transition, reserves, and to reduce taxes, continuing, "If we stray from the merger study suggestions, we could face financial difficulty down the road."

David Christopher Mosher, after thanking everybody for coming, posed three questions, asking the audience to "think about this as we move forward." The questions, which he said should apply to all board decisions, were, what is "Best for kids? Fair for adults? Sustainable for the community?" He said he feels if the board follows that criteria, "we will create the district we have been talking about tonight." Addressing district finances, Mosher said, "We need to follow the merger study as a guideline, not as gospel." He talked about the importance of stabilizing taxes, and noted that with the board keeping the three previously posed questions in mind, "everybody in this school district and community will go places we want to be at, and know we can get to."

Lee Quackenbush said that when asked why he decided to run, he felt that having been involved throughout his life in applicable activities such as budgeting and building projects, would allow him to add something to the newly merged district. "My goal is to see the district the best it can be. We can do this with cooperation," he said. He also noted that while he agrees with the funding plan laid out by the district merger study, he said "we need to look at all our buildings," citing a ten year building aid bonus clause, which would require the state to provide the district with 98 percent of approved expenditures. He said at the end of the ten year period, all the buildings should be in great condition, "so when we go off of that, we are in very good shape."

Keith Handy noted that he once, as past president of the St. Johnsville School Board, requested that the district look into a merger. He stated, "Now that we have merged, we need to look at our own hearts and minds and really, if there's anyone that's not too happy with this decision, I ask you honestly take a look at the opportunity we have here," which he said includes the chance to stabilize the districts and community in times of financial crisis. He continued, "We need to realistically, as we rebuild this school and programming, look at the finances, and for the board members to be extremely responsible with the business side of the school," which he said should be run like a family, with the district saving for the future. He also stressed the importance of technology, relating the opportunity to acquire it with keeping a hold on finances. "If we can keep track of finances, we will have happy parents, happy teachers and happy students," he concluded.

Chad Eggleston said that while "sustainability" is understandably the number one goal on any school board's agenda, as "we really are living in an uncertain time," he noted that "I didn't get on the board because of sustainability." His interest in being on the board of education is because "I'm a father of four young children in this school district." He said that if he's not on the board in the future, "I'll still be a guy in the audience pushing the school to give the best to those four children." He concluded, "Ultimately, we all care about the community, we all care about the children of our community, and we really want the best for all of them for now, and well into the future."

Susanne Sammons, who explained that she loves children, having them in her life continuously, working with them everyday, stated during her comments, "I believe that our students deserve everything we can give them and more, if possible," continuing, "It is our responsibility to take each child's interest and needs into consideration, and to do our best to accommodate their learning styles." Addressing finances, she noted that she's fiscally conservative and said she'd like to stick to the merger study's plan for investing money, "so down the road, 20 years from now, we are still taken care of." She concluded that she'd like to, as a board member, "increase class offerings, reinstate learning experiences [field trips and guest speakers], and encourage staff development while keeping in mind a fiscally conservative budget."

Neil Clark explained that even prior to the merger study, when he saw Oppenheim-Ephratah and St. Johnsville students interacting in sports, he knew that interaction was natural and necessary. After the study, "it was a no brainer," he stated, explaining that larger class spaces will produce like minded kids, which will lead to programs being established. He referred to new policies, such as Common Core and Race to the Top, stating, "We can look at everything now, and if you have a proactive board that's involved and works close with leadership to establish a structure," it will build morale. He said he wants students to be proud of their district, and noted that if that's accomplished, they will leave the school still "ready to learn." "Even if I'm not elected to the board, I will be around because I care," about all children of the district, Clark stated.

Renee Swartz first detailed her experience leading up to this point, explaining that her path began when she was approached by a school board member, asked to serve on the Merger Study Committee, which eventually led to her pursuing a seat on the board of education. "I'm so glad I did it," she said of her initial decision to join the MSC, continuing, "It made me learn what I know now." She expressed that she wants to continue learning how to do best by the students of the district, stating, "Over the last two years being on the school board, it's now become a passion." She said that even while she aims toward achieving fiscal responsibility for the district, the top priority is the students. She concluded, "Our kids have certainly proven that we can do great things together."

Ben Conte said in his speech that he'll be the first to say he's not necessarily a fiscal conservative, stating, "I'm just a conservative." He said he probably wouldn't have a problem spending money if it's for "the right reasons." He said that as a board member, he hopes to reinstate lost courses, updated with a modern eye, see core class students receive articulated and college credit, and expressed the importance of keeping up with technology. He also noted that the fact that mandates dictate a large percent of where aid goes is "troubling," explaining that while "we'd all love to see a lot of this red tape disappear," the district can find ways to "go around it, and make it work for us."

William Lints stated that though he's relatively unknown in comparison to some of the other candidates, he's been a member of the community for ten years, and because of his vast experience as both student and educator, he "Understands every single aspect of arts, humanities, science and math, and I fully support all of it." Students of the district "need to be offered the same opportunities," he said. He referred to the phrase "Rome wasn't built in a day," stating, "If you're excited about making this community our own, it's not going to be built in a day, but this is the time when we can make it our Rome." He also expressed a desire to not see teachers stretched so thin, allowing them to get excited about the courses they teach. Lints concluded "I want to be able to be your representative for the community on this board, and meet your needs and serve your concerns … I feel like I can do a great job and I'm qualified for the opportunity."

Bruce Carpenter stated that he's seen a lot in his "behind the scenes" position at OE over the course of the past 30 years. "I've seen a lot from the teachers that work there, and I know a lot of them wish they had a little bit more stuff to work with," he said noting the importance of access to technology. He also said that he wants the opportunity to make sure that no student falls "between the cracks". He concluded, "I would like your support on the 19th, and hopefully we can start a new life together on the Oppenheim-Ephratah-St. Johnsville Board."