LUCILLE PRATER-HOLLIDAY

After just one term, Sharene Shealey, District 1 representative of the Pittsburgh Public School District Board of Directors, decided

not to run for reelection in the upcoming May 21 primary election. Shealey’s departure has drawn two candidates for her seat, Lucille Prater-Holliday and Sylvia Wilson.

The two candidates joined others from around the district at a student led forum hosted by A+ Schools on May 8. In line with the forum’s theme, Wilson, a retired teacher, and Prater-Holliday, a community activist, both expressed a commitment to children.

“Every child deserves every chance to receive a high quality education,” Prater-Holliday said. “My wonderful experience as a student in the Pittsburgh Public Schools is the reason I have made this my life’s work.”

“Kids have always been at the very middle of what I’ve done,” Wilson said.

Wilson recently retired as the assistant to the president of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers. This background reflects her position on the district’s “Empowering Effective Teachers” plan, which aims to put an effective teacher in every classroom.

“In Pittsburgh there are high standards when we hire teachers so we’re not getting the bottom of the barrel,” Wilson said.

“Ensuring every student has an effective teacher means making sure teachers have the support they need.”

Wilson and Prater-Holliday agreed on the importance of seniority in teacher placement and furlough decisions. However, Prater-Holliday said teachers should take a personality test because there are several who are not truly committed to children.

Similar to other candidates in the school board race, Prater-Holliday and Wilson agreed out of school suspensions were not an effective method of discipline.

SYLVIA WILSON

“There are alternatives to out of school suspensions because we know that some of our kids like to be out of school,” Wilson said.

Prater-Holiday said she had helped the former Peabody High School implement a peer court for disciplinary issues. She said this program combined with other alternative disciplinary measures reduced discipline issues by 51 percent.

The candidates were asked to offer solutions to balancing the district’s budget.  Wilson said the best method would be to increase enrollment in district schools and did not provide methods for reducing spending.

“The school district’s budget is bigger than the City of Pittsburgh and why not, because our children are our greatest assets,” Wilson said.

Prater-Holiday also said increasing enrollment was paramount, but did not want to demonize area charter schools that are drawing students away from the district.

“Whether you have money or you don’t have money, you should be able to send your child to any school you want to,” she said of the opportunity charter schools provide for low-income families. “I think one of the ways we can attract families back to the schools is by doing a better job of educating the students we have now.”

In the past, Prater-Holiday served as president of community organizations ACORN and Action United. She also ran for Pittsburgh City Council in 2011.

Wilson worked as a teacher in the district for 26 years. She served as secretary of the PFT executive board for more than 30 years, beginning in 1979.

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STEPHEN DeFLITCH

Two parents with students in the Pittsburgh Public School District are running for the District 5 school board seat in the May 21 primary election. Current School Board Director Theresa Colaizzi has decided not to run for re-election after four terms on the board, leaving an open race for a district that includes Greenfield PreK-8, Mifflin PreK-8, and Minadeo PreK-5.

In addition to being concerned parents, there are several similarities between candidates Stephen DeFlitch and Terry Kennedy who both reside in Greenfield. When asked about how they would reduce the achievement gap between Black and White students at a recent candidate forum hosted by A+ Schools, both pointed to parenting as a leading factor.

“If I knew the answer to that, I could run for president,” DeFlitch said. “A lot of studies show the achievement gap happens over the summer months and when our parents aren’t involved in their children’s lives.”

“There are some of our parents who never graduated high school, never went to college,” Kennedy said, but also added that she believes culturally responsive curriculum would better engage African-American students.

One area where they disagree, measures for evaluating teacher effectiveness, could prove to be a determining factor in each of the school board races this election. After the new school board representatives take office, the district will renegotiate the collective bargaining agreement with the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers and the public is pressing the candidates on whether they will side with teachers or district administrators.

TERRY KENNEDY

“I think that the CBA coming up is extremely important,” DeFlitch said. “This is the one opportunity we have to do something about it, to get involved as a voting block.”

DeFlitch said he was in favor of evaluating teacher effectiveness through methods such as the value-added measure which looks at how students improve over the course of a year. Kennedy said she was in favor of putting the most effective teachers in the neediest schools, and believed the district already had effective teachers.

“Trust our union and our administration to put an effective teacher in front of every student,” Kennedy said.

Despite his approval of teacher evaluations, DeFlitch also believes teachers should have greater control over their schools. When it comes to the district’s budget and possible upcoming shortfalls, he said school staff should have input on how the district’s resources are allocated.

“I think principals and teachers who work with students everyday need to have a bigger say in where that money is going,” DeFlitch said.

DeFlitch has served on the Excellence for All, parent steering committee since 2004. He works in engineering as a quality/manufacturing manager.

Kennedy has been a member of the district’s parent teacher organizations since 1999. She currently serves on the Pittsburgh Local Task Force on the Right to Education.

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LORRAINE BURTON-EBERHARDT (Contributed)

After 12 years representing District 9 on the Pittsburgh Public School District Board of Directors, Floyd “Skip” McCrea will be stepping down. Running for the seat in the upcoming May 21 primary election are Lorraine Burton-Eberhardt, Carolyn Klug, and Dave Schuilenburg.

While the district represents schools in both the West End and the North Side, all three candidates come from the North Side. But that’s not where the similarities end.

At a candidate forum hosted by A+ Schools, all three candidates expressed opposition to out of school suspensions and other methods the district uses to discipline students.

“I’ve heard there are some schools where there is a detention class but there’s not even an adult in the room,” Schuilenburg said.

All three candidates said the district’s resources could be better handled. Burton-Eberhardt said she would do a time study to see where the district’s money was going. Schuilenburg said he would redistribute assets based on the individual needs of communities and schools

“We need to make sure funds are being used in schools and not on consultants,” Schuilenburg said.

When asked how they would attract students to the district, Klug said it was important to make the district’s schools as attractive or more attractive then charter schools.

CAROLYN KLUG (Photos by J.L. Martello)

“Magnets were the precursor to charter schools,” Klug said. “I think we need to revisit our magnets.”

The candidates also chimed in on the growing debate surrounding “teacher effectiveness.” Klug said the key to improving teachers is to work with them to determine what works in the classroom.

“The district needs to move back to professional development that reflects best practices,” Klug said.
Schuilenburg said the district should reward teachers who meet goals set out at the state level. Burton-Eberhardt said she would review teacher-hiring practices and review the union contract to make it easier to discharge a teacher.

Despite her background of serving 31 years in the district in positions ranging from teacher to principal, Burton-Eberhardt did not default to taking the sides of teachers and school administrators.

“I think the board members need to be more visible in the community, but I also think the schools need to do their part. Parents want to be involved but a lot of the time they’re not invited” Burton-Eberhardt said. “I’ve worked in all levels of the district so I know the ins and outs of the district.”

Klug also has more than 30 years of experience as an educator. She has also volunteered her time with the Girl Scouts of Western PA: Girls with Special Needs Committee and the Pittsburgh Symphony Educators Committee.

“I want to make sure all children have equal access to resources in the district and to make sure we get more resources for our district,” Klug said.

Unlike his two opponents, Schuilenburg isn’t a retired educator. He works as a 9-1-1 officer and trainer and is a founding member of the PA Freedom of Information Coalition.

DAVE SCHUILENBURG