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Allegheny County, PA May 19, 2009 Election
Smart Voter

School Board Director Position

By Connie H. "Ruhl" (Garcia) Ruhl

Candidate for School Director; Bethel Park School District

This information is provided by the candidate
Philosophy of role of school board members Position on new school
I believe as a member of the school board your role should be:
  • To oversee a sound, financial, affordable budget
  • To provide opportunities for the best instructional methodologies for each student's learning style
  • To provide educational opportunities that meet the needs of all students for (both college bound and work bound students)
  • To provide a safe environment for our students

My position on the new high school:
  • We have spent three years on making a decision on building a new high school
  • We have devoted a lot of time and thought on renovation vs new construction
  • We spent money on renovation in the early '90's. I understand we ran out of money after completing renovations in the elementary schools. We had not enough money to do a complete renovation job on the on the high school. It would have been better to set aside that money and get interest accrued for a down payment for when the job could be done appropriately.
  • Given the fact that a campus-- housing eight (50 yr. old buildings) is costly to maintain in today's environment) the safety concerns of today and the cost to renovate today not much less than a new building, we need to consider the building of a new school. I was one of three candidates who supported building a large building on the present site and connecting a few of our existing buildings to it-this would have eliminated all of the extra costs spent to place it on the new site. This did not have the support of enough board members; therefore, the majority wanted the new high school on the new site.
  • The decision has been made and we must move forward. I believe that we must now be prudent in our building and keep in mind that our community can't afford spending any additional monies beyond what we have proposed forthis endeavor.
  • We must maintain what we put in place so that the next 5 decades of community citizens can get longer life from this new high school.
  • Our community will be able to sell their houses for good market value (when the economy comes back) and be proud of their educational system when all is done.
  • I thank the residents who have followed this project and have provided input (pro or con) and I will work to see that their input has been acknowledged.
  • I have enjoyed my years on the school board and I think we have come through some tumultous years, but the students have always made us proud. The educational staff, students and administration will continue to strive putting Bethel Park in the prominent place that it deserves to be.
  • We have done it, we continue to do it, and we will continue our dedication to making Bethel Park proud of its graduates and its community.

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pa/al Created from information supplied by the candidate: April 29, 2009 10:16
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