BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Sustained academic success, continued investments in student and teacher support, additional state funding and no property tax increase are among the main campaign platforms of candidates for Bethlehem Area school board.
- Three incumbents are looking to hold their seats in the primary election for Bethlehem Area school board
- Election Day is Tuesday, May 16
- Continued academic successes, additional state funding, and holding the line on property taxes are among the key issues
Two incumbents and one newcomer are running as a slate for three at-large seats, while another incumbent hopes to fend off challenges from two new candidates for one seat in Region III.
In Region II, Republican incumbent Michael D. Recchiuti has cross-filed and is running unopposed for that lone seat.
In Region III, incumbent Democrat Kim Shively looks to fend off challenges from first-time candidates, Republicans Cindy A. O’Brien and Anthony M. Gentile, for the only seat.
O’Brien, who also is running for an at-large seat, and Shively have cross-filed.
If a candidate cross-files, he or she needs to win in one party’s primary election to advance to the general election. A candidate also may appear on the ballot of both parties in the general election if he or she wins both nominations in the primary.
Bethlehem Area School Board consists of nine members elected to four-year, staggered terms. Three members are elected by the district, and the other six members elected at-large.
The race for at-large seats
In the at-large race, incumbents Karen Beck Pooley and Emily Root Schenkel and newcomer M. Rayah Levy, all Democrats, are running as a slate of candidates.
They say the most important task facing the school district and its board members is supporting students’ academic success and well-being.
They also support the district's efforts to invest in its nationally recognized literacy program, which was founded a few years ago by incoming Superintendent Dr. Jack Silva when he was assistant superintendent.
The Pooley-Schenkel-Levy slate pledges to extend that work into the middle schools, as well as the district’s widely praised investments in social and emotional learning, and collaborations with community partners to make mental and behavioral health services available at all schools.
Pooley, Schenkel and Levy vow to be strong advocates for the district in Harrisburg, to ensure that the district receives its full and fair amount of state funding, which they say has not been the case.
Pooley is seeking a fourth three-year term on the board. She is chairwoman of its facilities committee, which oversees the maintenance of all district schools.
She represents the board on Northampton Community College’s board of trustees and is part of Northside Alive, a community planning effort, as well as on the board of Community Action Development Bethlehem, on the South Side.
Schenkel seeks a second term. She is a member of the vo-tech joint committee, wellness committee, equity committee, SRO committee, audit committee and middle school athletics committee. She also serves on the Northside Alive committee.
Schenkel has called for upgrades to many district buildings. For example, on April 24, an exterior stairwell wall collapsed at William Penn Elementary — among three badly deteriorating elementary schools the district plans to tear down.
Levy is a member of Bethlehem Human Relation Commission, is on the State Historical Records Advisory Board and was a member of the Executive Board at Moravian Historical Society.
O’Brien has taught in Bethlehem schools as a multi-district substitute.
She said she's running for school board because she thinks public education should give children the foundational knowledge and skills needed to realize their potential as human beings and to develop a sense of civic responsibility.
She also said education should help children identify career options and prepare them for the real-world challenges.
O’Brien said she'll also advocate for support for teachers, staff and administrators; make transparency between teachers and parents an ongoing objective; and upgrade safety and security measures at all schools.
O’Brien said she also would support the introduction of Generative Artificial Intelligence into the school curriculum where appropriate.
In addition to raising her family, O’Brien and her husband, a Lehigh University economics professor, have sponsored eight children from Haiti through the charity, Save the Children.
Region III
Shively lauded the current makeup of the school board for holding the line on property taxes; the board has raised taxes just once over the past four years.
To continue shifting the tax burden from Bethlehem residents — many from lower income families — Shively said the state must contribute more to public education. That would let the district continue programs that greatly benefit students.
Shively was first elected in 2019.
A Bethlehem resident since 2003, she is married with four children and is a Kutztown University anthropology professor.
She said a major reason for her continued interest in being a member of the school board is the education her children received, especially the special education programs that benefited two of her children who are on the autism spectrum.
Gentile, of Bethlehem, said he would be an ally on the school board for students and parents. He is opposed to Critical Race Theory being taught in schools.
A New York native and Navy veteran, he graduated from St. Leo’s University in Florida and taught history and law in the state for 17 years. He has three children and two grandchildren.
Gentile currently is a school resource officer at Roberto Clemente Charter School, Allentown.
He said his background teaching elementary and middle school and exceptional student education gives him an institutional knowledge of how to best serve students and teachers.
Unopposed in Region II race
Recchiuti, a Bethlehem native and Hanover Township resident, is a local attorney who was appointed to the school board in November to replace Craig Neiman, who resigned.
Recchiuti said he'll work toward an increased initiative in the mathematics curriculum and continued mental health support for students coming out of the coronavirus pandemic.
Recchiuti said he's focused on advocating for increased state funding for schools, noting that Pennsylvania ranked 44th nationally in that area. He noted the school district relies on local taxpayers for 70% of the school budget.
A Bethlehem native, Recchiuti has resided in Hanover Township since 2016. His daughter is a fourth-grade student at Hanover Elementary School.
He is a partner in the law firm Kolb, Vasiliadis, Florenz & Recchiuti, Bethlehem. A Penn State University graduate, he got a juris doctor degree at Western New England University.
Recchiuti is a past member of Bethlehem City Council and the Bethlehem Parking Authority board of directors. He also was an adjunct professor at Northampton Community College.
