Amid ‘super’ corruption probe, 11 go for Pittston Area board

YATESVILLE – Eleven candidates are competing for nominations in the May 19 primaries to run for four open school director seats on the Pittston Area School Board.

The campaign is overshadowed by a Federal Bureau of Investigation corruption probe that centers on embattled Superintendent Ross Scarantino, charged with accepting money in exchange for awarding district contracts.

Ten candidates have cross-filed for the Democratic and Republican nomination, while one candidate filed for a Democratic nomination.

The top four candidates receiving the most votes on each party’s ballot will face off in the November general election.

Incumbents R. Kent Bratlee, Joseph J. Oliveri and Bob Linskey Jr. have cross-filed and are opposed by newcomers Ross J. Latona, Richard Gorzkowski, Marilyn Starna, Bruce Knick, John Casey Donahue, Tony Balavage and Robert Lampman. William Patrick Gaffney is the sole candidate who didn’t cross-file.

Linskey and Bratlee, who have each served one term, said they hope voters realize that not all school board members are corrupt.

Some of the candidates are running independently, some are running on teams, but they all agree there are a variety of topics that need to be tackled to improve the district.

The school district does not have a hiring policy. If Bratlee, of Avoca, is re-elected, he said he intends to change that because he said he is tired of people being hired based on who the applicant knows. He wants the policy to affect all employees – from janitors through the superintendent.

“You want to see the most qualified person hired, and to do that, you need a hiring policy,” said Bratlee, who is running with Linskey, Lampman and Latona as a team. All four men expressed the same interest in adopting such a policy.

Gaffney, a 70-year-old retired union steward for the Teamsters, said the hiring practice would be his primary focus. He wants the hiring to be fair and balanced, and teachers’ promotion should be based on seniority.

Lampman, of Pittston Township, wants to encourage local university officials to come in to review the district’s curriculum to ensure the right courses are being offered to help students prepare for the future.

“Are we teaching these kids the right courses that are going to help them in the job field,” said Lampman, 54.

Donahue, campaigning on a team with Oliveri, Knick and Balavage, believes Lampman is on the right path to ensure students are getting a superb education. Donahue planned to work with his own daughters, who are Pittston Area graduates, to get feedback on what students need to prepare for college.

He and Latona want to encourage more discussion of ideas from parents and students with district administration and board members.

Bratlee, Linskey, Latona, Knick and Starna agree there needs to be more accountability regarding the district’s awarding of contracts. Linskey, Starna, Latona and Bratlee want to end the district’s no-bid award process.

“I think if we send everything out to bid, the taxpayers are the ones that are going to benefit,” said Latona, 32, of Duryea. A chiropractor, he was narrowly defeated when he ran for the board in 2007.

Starna, a Wachovia Bank branch manager in Pittston, narrowly lost the 2003 election. If elected she said she wants the district to develop a policy stipulating that every contract include a clause stating change orders can’t exceed 1 percent of the project’s total cost.

She supports the ethics policy recently presented for the board’s review by current board member Terry Best.

“We need to role model what we expect the children to do,” said Starna, of Pittston Township.

Linskey, director of finance at Luzerne County Community College, has long asked for budget meetings so board members could work together to develop a budget rather than just have the superintendent and the district’s business consultant develop a budget to present to the board.

Knick said changes have to be made considering the corruption probe, and favors instituting a committee to oversee district purchases.

“I don’t think it’s anyone’s fault (corruption probe), but there has to be changes made,” Knick said. He said a “a committee to do checks and balances” is needed. “You have to have trust in your superintendent. Most of the directors have jobs during the day, so you can’t tie the (superintendent’s) hands.”

Scarantino, of Duryea, is accused by the U.S. Attorney’s Office of accepting cash in connection with the awarding of contracts by the school district. He has been on a leave of absence collecting his yearly salary of $117,570 since April 16.

Gorzkowski wants board members to remember the reason they originally sought the seat.

“They’re on the board for a reason: for the children,” said Gorzkowski, 43, of Pittston Township.

Gorzkowski, a graduate of Pittston Area and Wilkes University, has a child attending the district and is one of three candidates campaigning as an independent. Starna and Gaffney are also running independently.

Balavage couldn’t be reached for comment. Oliveri didn’t return numerous calls seeking comment.

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