Superintendent Withdraws Graduation Credit Plan

Accusations and a general lack of support prompted Saucon Valley School District superintendent Dr. Sandra Fellin to withdraw her earlier proposal Nov. 13.

Skeptical school board members and strong teacher opposition led superintendent Dr. Sandra Fellin to withdraw a proposed graduation credit plan during the Saucon Valley School Board meeting Nov. 13. The majority of concerns among board members and teachers were related to the plan's decrease in mandatory credits for graduation in core subjects such as English, mathematics, social studies and the sciences. Referring to the proposed decrease in the number of mandatory social studies courses, board member Bryan Eichfeld said "we need citizens coming out of here knowing what this country is about and what's going on." The criticism of the plan was multi-faceted, however, even ranging to what board member Lanita Lum described as the possibility…

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School Board to Vote on Replacing Retiring Teachers

The Saucon Valley School Board voted Tuesday to allow superintendent Sandra Fellin to advertise for positions, although the board could vote to eliminate those positions by attrition.

At the March 27 school board meeting, Saucon Valley superintendent Sandra Fellin discussed five different positions within the district that could potentially be eliminated for the 2012-2013 school year. At a recent board meeting, some school board members asked Fellin to provide some scenarios about what would happen if she did not replace all of the district's retiring teachers, as she had originally planned to do. Fellin said she may not have to replace a retiring kindergarten teacher because enrollment numbers for next year are lower than usual. She said the impact on the district would be that they would need to hire a teacher in the future if enrollment increases. She also said she could avoid replacing a retiring sixth grade teacher…

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GrowUpSaucon

7:59 am on Saturday, April 7, 2012

Lanita knew me well enough to direct me before I attended the first meeting on how to prepare my written piece to present it to the board. I had never done such a thing before and she guided me on what and how to verbalize the situation....BUT we didn't know one another...   more ›

School Board Member Rails Against Textbook in Opinion Piece

In a Morning Call "Your View" letter, Saucon Valley School Board member Bryan Eichfeld is speaking out against a textbook he calls "politically motivated and factually inaccurate."

A Saucon Valley School Board member, who last month criticized a high school textbook for information it presents on the subject of global warming, is speaking out against the book in the Morning Call's "Your View" opinion section. Bryan Eichfeld says in his Feb. 11 letter that upon review, he found the textbook "'Globalization and Diversity' to be politically motivated and factually inaccurate." "I take exception to the authors' biases that mankind and capitalistic greed are destroying our planet," he writes. "We as parents are responsible for shaping the minds of our children and we must ensure that a balanced perspective is given to our students." In his letter, Eichfeld also criticizes the board for not being more involved in the …

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School Board Member Skeptical of Textbook

Saucon Valley School Board member Bryan Eichfeld raised concerns over a social studies text that includes information about global warming at the board's Jan. 23 meeting.

As school board members were about to vote to adopt the new textbooks for the 2012-2013 school year at their Jan. 23 meeting, board member Bryan Eichfeld asked to table the decision due to a book he said he does not believe will benefit students. Eichfeld’s motion did not pass, but it caused discussion among school board members and the administration. “The book talks about global warming,” Eichfeld said. “It is presented as fact. (Global warming) is a theory and not a fact.” Eichfeld said he does not believe global warming is a proven fact, and said the subject may become “obsolete in a few years.” “This smacks of censorship to me,” said board member Charles Bartolet. The book in question, titled "Globalization and Diversity," is not a …

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Bob Linney

1:38 pm on Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Jason, with regard to "evil" I was just referring to Eichfeld's statement about the "big evilness in the way it was presented." I never said that the Tea Party's agenda was evil. My comment on "evilness" was that Eichfeld was deceitful in not sharing with the voters his strong association with the Tea Party's ideas and agenda. If he is proud of his association then he should share it with the …   more ›

Eichfeld Wins School Board Seat, Township EIT Referendum Approved

Republican Bryan Eichfeld won a seat on the Saucon Valley School Board Nov. 8, capturing about 300 more votes than Democrat Jeanne Reilly. A referendum to continue funding open space preservation in Lower Saucon Township was also approved.

A race for five open Saucon Valley School Board seats that involved four incumbents and two challengers was decided Tuesday, with Republican challenger Bryan Eichfeld capturing more votes than Democratic newcomer Jeanne Reilly to claim the fifth seat on the board. Eichfeld ran on a platform promising fiscal conservatism, while Reilly emphasized the perspective she would bring to the board as a parent of students in the district. According to unofficial returns posted on the Northampton County Board of Elections website, with all 11 district precincts reporting their vote totals--and out of more than 8,500 votes cast--Eichfeld had 1,172 votes to Reilly's 873. Incumbents Charles Bartolet, Susan Baxter, Michael Karabin and Sharon Stack easily…

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Local School Board Candidates Issue Final Statements

Six candidates are vying for five seats on the Saucon Valley School Board Nov. 8. Here are statements from three of the candidates.

Editor's Note: Via email, Patch offered the six candidates currently seeking a seat on the Saucon Valley School Board the opportunity to submit a 250-word-or-less statement about why they are seeking election or re-election. The following statements--which are listed in alphabetical order according to last name--were received from candidates who responded to the request. The six candidates for Saucon Valley School Board on Nov. 8, 2011 are incumbents Susan Baxter, Sharon Stack, Michael Karabin and Charles Bartolet, and challengers Bryan Eichfeld and Jeanne Reilly. BRYAN EICHFELD Bryan Eichfeld is the clear choice for taxpayers in Saucon Valley School District. The taxpayers of the Saucon Valley School District have been very generous over …

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Reilly, Eichfeld Advance to Fall School Board Election

Saucon Valley voters went to the polls Tuesday to cast ballots for school board members, council members and to vote on an important Northampton County referendum related to Gracedale.

In spite of wet weather, Saucon Valley voters went to the polls Tuesday, cast ballots for school board and council candidates, and voted "yes" or "no" on a county-wide referendum that would prevent the sale of the Northampton County-owned home for the aged--Gracedale--for five years. With approximately 98 percent of county precincts reporting their unofficial totals, voters had overwhelmingly opposed the sale of Gracedale, voting approximately 73 percent to 27 percent to keep the facility county-owned in the near future. In the race for five at-large seats on the Saucon Valley School Board, the familiar names of four incumbent candidates dominated the top spots on both the Republican and Democratic sides of the ticket, but two newcomers …

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Seven Candidates Vying for Five School Board Seats

Cross-filing means the winners of the Saucon Valley School Board primary will most likely serve for the next four years.

Three challengers and four incumbent Saucon Valley School Board members are running for five, four-year at-large school director positions up for election in Tuesday's primary election. Hellertown-Lower Saucon Patch asked each candidate to provide local voters with some vital statistics and a brief statement summing up their views. They appear below, in no particular order. Candidates' answers are in regular type, our questions (and an occasional addition for clarification) are in italics, and candidates' statements are in bold.   Age: 60 Neighborhood of residence and number of years here: Wassergass (Lower Saucon Township), 37 years Do you have children in the district or relatives who work for the district?: No Political affiliation: …

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Nancy Echenberg

12:40 pm on Monday, May 16, 2011

Ahh...a voice a reason..thank you, Ron...for saying it so well!   more ›

The Katz Meow

The Good Fairy and Our Schools

The policy views of some current Saucon Valley School Board candidates are not likely to produce a fairy tale ending for the district.

Editor's Note: Arthur Joel Katz is a former Saucon Valley School Board member (2000-2005). We are only a few days away from Election Day for Saucon Valley School Board candidates. Six of the seven candidates (the exception is Jeanne Reilly) state that their policy, if elected, would be to hold school taxes at their present level and deal with state and federal cuts in educational support--nevermind the inevitable cost increases--by somehow not only freezing salaries and benefits to teachers, administrators and other school employees, but getting this group to give back some of the benefits they have already obtained. There must be something in the tea that these candidates are drinking; probably Good Fairy Juice. That might indicate that …

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