Wilkes-Barre Area School District

From LuLac: Very simple. Ned Evans former District employee vs Kathy Grinaway a widowed, working mother who has worked in the private sector all her life. Grinaway has presented herself well, Evans I’m told has not. People have told me there is nothing wrong with have former School District employees on a School Board. I agree. But you don’t want all of them to make a majority. Already political insiders are calling it “The Coaches Club”. That is just so wrong for the district. Plus look at how this district was asleep at the wheel when Attorney Anthony Lupus overcharged for professional services. They thought that was okay.

Incumbent Christine Katsock and newcomers Joe Caffrey  and Denise Thomas won double nominations and barring some last minute scandal will probably win 3 of the 4 spots up for election. I would really like to see the end of cross filing for school board races as there is nothing more political in this area than a school board. Better yet get rid of school boards and let the IU's administer education.


I still can't forgive Katsock for voting for indicted and later convicted criminal Frank Pizzella as board president and she botched the hiring policy. For too long the hiring policy has been who you know are related to but then again that's life but it's done in such a blatant way.

The TL story by Mark Guydish asks about security and 3 of them want to put metal detectors in the schools.Denise Thomas said it would only cost $50,000. Sorry Denise, there are  a bunch of other costs with metal detectors. They have to be maintained and calibrated then you have to train people to man them so they know what they are looking for. And the biggest cost is

Do we really want to treat our kids like criminals?

So the final choice is between Evans and Grinaway with wild card Independent Sam Troy thrown in.

I like bomb throwers and rabble rousers so Sam has one of my votes and Grinaway has the other. That's only 2 votes out of 4 spots so I will write-in the Yonk.

Wilkes-Barre Area School Board

The reorganization meeting of the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board was anything but organized according to the story by Peter Cameron in the Citizens Voice  with 2 breaks for executive sessions and Christine Katsock calling the meeting illegal.

Former Coughlin HS teacher and sports coach John Quinn was elected President and Barbara Youngblood Louis Elmy as VP. The Secret Service was interested in Quinn's son a few months ago according to the TL.

You have to wonder who would even want the job of school director in Wilkes-Barre. It doesn't pay anything and you get a lot of grief in the local papers after you hire a relative for a position. Or maybe that's it.

This is a body that has seen 3 members convicted of corruption. Jim Height, Brian Dunn and Frank Pizzella. After Pizzella was indicted he was elected as board President with the support of former reformer Christine Katsock .    If there is any government body in Luzerne County that needs to change it's public persona it's this one but that doesn't seem to faze this bunch much. They made a hash of hiring a new superintendent and the new hiring policy is a joke.

Four seats are up in the upcoming election in May. The incumbents are Christine Katsock, Lynn Evans, Phil Latinski and Bob Corcoran. I haven't heard if any of them will seek reelection.

Katsock ran for many offices as a Republican reformer before she finally a spot on the school board.  She came within 800 votes of defeating Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tom Leighton in 2003 and gave State Rep Eddie Day Pashinski a run for his money in 2006. She switched to the Democrats  when she ran for the board and had no comment when asked to explain her vote for Pizzella but it's not hard to figure out if you look at her Campaign Finance Report. Frank Pizzella was her top cash contributor pitching in $3000. She also got $1800 as a in-kind contribution from the Friends of Frank Pizzella.

Evans voted against Pizella and the new super and revealed the pick system of filling jobs.

Latinski goes along. 

Bob Corcoran has other troubles. Update: Corcoran barred from home, contact with son

Pure Bunkum has a couple of insightful posts about this subject.

I think we should get rid of school boards and KeystonePolitics proposes putting the Intermediate Units in charge

Pizzella sentenced to a Time Out

Another house arrest for an admitted criminal. I hate to bash a judge because you never know when you might end up in front of one but this sentence is ridiculous.

CV: U.S. District Judge James M. Munley ordered Pizzella to serve two years of probation, including five months on house arrest, after a federal prosecutor detailed Pizzella's cooperation in at least seven different investigations. Pizzella must also pay a $10,000 fine.

Pizzella has been singing to the FBI ratting out fellow Wilkes-Barre Area School Board members Brian Dunn and James Height and has provided information about the carpet guy plus the overcharging by Intellecom. The TL story says he was feeding the FBI information about Luzerne County Judges when he was Ann Lokuta's tipstaff.

His attorney conceded Pizzella “can in some respects annoy people” by being brusque. That is an understatement. Judge Munley cited Pizzella's cooperation and "spotless reputation" in deciding not to send him to jail.

Spotless reputation? Are we talking about the same person?


Pizzella, a former Plains Township police officer and township commissioner, has been accused of spousal abuse, punching his father and threatening to kill his daughter. In 1980, police accused Pizzella and a friend of hiring a hitman to break the legs of a political rival.


Pizzella also claims he is in poor health. It seems to be a problem with all the people who have snared in probe here in Corruption Junction. Judge Toole also claims he has a bad back, it must be contageous.


Judge Munley said: “We condemn the conduct. What he was engaged in is outrageous. It’s a throwback” to days when public officials routinely behaved that way, “and it will not be tolerated any more.”

If you don't put people in jail what is the deterrent Judge Munley?

On background I have been told that Frankie Kneecaps will not be allowed to watch Nickelodeon or The Disney Channel while he spends the next 5 months sitting on his duff. As an additional punishment he won't get a graham cracker after recess or a chocolate milk.

Look for the the union label

“Public office is an office of public trust. Any violation like this is a violation of the public’s trust. I don’t care how big or small it is"-Robert Corcoran



Wilkes-Barre Area School Board Director Christine Katsock is being accused of trademark violation for misusing a union label on one of the those annoying sticker ads that was stuck on the front page of the Citizen Voice in April.

Robert Corcoran of Airmont Printing in Plains Township said he co "It's a personnel issue."ntacted the Allied Printing and Trades Association after he discovered Katsock had included Corcoran’s union printing label – which indicated he had printed the document – on campaign material Katsock utilized during the May 2009 primary.

The problem, Corcoran said, is he did not print the material and did not give Katsock permission to use his label. As a union shop, the label is licensed exclusively to him and any use of it without his permission could be considered a violation of trademark laws.

So the ad was not only printed by by another shop they used Corcoran's label and he is pissed. I'm sure this will end up in court.

Ms. Katsock is not as loquacious as she used to be. Back in the old days (pre-2009) she was always good for quote in the local rags. Since she actually got elected to something Katsock is not available for comment.

The TL reports that she did not return a phone message Tuesday seeking comment on this story. When asked why she voted for Gary Polakowski to take the place of to take the place of admitted crook Frank Pizzella she demurred saying "It's a personnel issue." She earlier voted to reappoint Pizzella as board president despite the fact that Frankie Kneecaps was under indictment and declined to explain her vote.

It's like having our our own version of Sarah Palin who never answers questions from the press.

One of the funniest or saddest things is that Katsock is in charge of developing an anti-nepotism hiring policy.

A repost.


Katsock had no comment when asked to explain her vote for Pizzella but it's not hard to figure out if you look at her Campaign Finance Report. Frank Pizzella was her top cash contributor pitching in $3000. She also got $1800 as a in-kind contribution from the Friends of Frank Pizzella. Other notable contributions came from engineer Michael Pasonick who does business with just about every government agency in Luzerne County and has been implicated in the ongoing corruption scandal. Owners and employees of Apollo Electric chipped in $2000 and the owners of Popple Construction $2000.

The trouble with Harry

To nobody's surprise the Wilkes-Barre Are School Board replaced admited crook Frank Pizzella with another longtime politico, Gary Polakoski, who was nominated by former reformer Christine Katsock. This is not a not a knock on Mr. Polakoski who has served on the Wilkes-Barre Township council for 16 years who works for PennDOT and seems to be qualified. My choice was Harry Haas who fell short of a seat on the board by 116 votes in the last election or any other of one of the unconnected candidates.


Eight people submitted letters saying they wanted to be considered for Pizzella’s seat: Haas, Polakoski, Dr. James Susek, Al Smith, David Rubbico Sr., Peter Gagliardi, Jean Brodie-Druby and Lysandra Caiozza.



I didn't expect this bunch to do the right thing after they reelected Pizzella as board President and they didn't disapoint.



Haas released this statement after the vote. It's a PDF so I can't cut and paste. He promises to be back in 2 years.

Harry Haas for school board

A few weeks ago I suggested that Harry Haas should be appointed to the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board to take the place of disgraced former board President Frank "kneecaps" Pizzella. Harry finished 5th in the recent election to choose 4 board members and if they follow recent precedent in choosing replacements for admitted crooks he should be a shoo in. Christine Katsock was the top vote getter in the primary so she was chosen to take the place of previous board President Jim Height who plead guilty to taking a bribe. The other admitted (so far) crook on the board, Brian Dunn, didn't stand for reelection.

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The TL reports that 8 people have applied for the vacancy but the identity of the applicants is a secret. When will these people ever learn? The Luzerne County GOP put out a press release backing Haas which will probably be a kiss of death.

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WILKES-BARRE (Feb. 24, 2010) – The Luzerne County Republican Party is urging the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board to “do the right thing” and appoint Harry Haas to the open seat on the board.

Haas, a Republican, finished fifth in the November 2009 race for four seats on the school board. Haas missed out by 116 votes.

“We are asking the School Board to do the right thing,” Republican Chairman Terry Casey said. “Harry is exactly the type of person we need to make decisions for the district, its taxpayers and most importantly, its students. He is intelligent, open-minded, fair and has a background in education.”

Appointing Haas to the vacancy created by the resignation of Frank Pizzella would offer the school board the opportunity to prove to residents of the district that it is “not business as usual, or even, politics as usual,” Casey said.

Haas, 34, of Wilkes-Barre, is a teacher in the Dallas School District. During his campaign last year he advocated the preservation of the Wilkes-Barre Area School District’s old buildings, promised a fair-hiring process and supported training and advanced technology to meet the needs of a changing student body.

Haas has submitted a letter of interest to the school board which is expected to make an appointment on March 8.

Harry Haas for school board

Now that Frank Pizzella has resigned from the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board a replacement must be chosen by the board. Christine Katsock was tapped to fill the spot of admitted crook Jim Height because she topped the ballot in the primary. Harry Haas was the runner up in the general election and should be appointed to fill the vacancy. Fat chance of that happening, it would make too much sense.

Frank Pizzella pleads guilty of conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States

With all the election horse race news lately I have been remiss in covering the latest in the ongoing Luzerne County corruption scandals.

TL: Wilkes-Barre Area School Board President Frank Pizzella Jr., charged with passing a bribe onto another school board member, has signed a plea agreement with federal prosecutors.

I'm actually disappointed in Frankie kneecaps. He vowed to fight the charges and go to trial just last week and wanted the names of his accusers. I wanted a trial so we could start learning the names of the other people involved. Former reformer Christine Katsock must be heartbroken


In other corruption news:


SCRANTON – The sentencing for former Wilkes-Barre Area School Board member James Height on charges he accepted a bribe has been continued until March 9.



Oliveri sentenced to 366 days in prison

And the big one

Former commissioner Skrepenak pleads guilty to bribery charge

Greg Skrepenak said he didn't know what he did was wrong at the time but realizes it now. Another reason to end the corporate welfare programs known as Keystone Opportunity Zones (KOZ) and Tax increment financing (TIF). I think that Skrep and former Commissioner Todd Vonderheid are guilty of a worse transgression, doubling the County debt because they wouldn't raise taxes because of political reasons. Now taxes are being raised because of their mismanagement and the rampant corruption.




Property tax up 15 %

Christine, You broke our hearts

Follow the money-Deep Throat

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Much of the outrage over the re-election of Frank Pizzella as Wilkes-Barre Area School board President has been directed at newly elected board member Christine Katsock.

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I was always a fan of Christine who has run for many offices over the years as a Republican and self described taxpayer watchdog. She came within 800 votes of defeating Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tom Leighton in 2003 and gave State Rep Eddie Day Pashinski a run for his money in 2006. I was happy when she finally won an election to something. Then something happened (dispute with Steve Urban?) that prompted her to change her registration and was spotted working the polls for Tom Leighton when he ran for re-election.

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She had no comment when asked to explain her vote for Pizzella but it's not hard to figure out if you look at her Campaign Finance Report. Frank Pizzella was her top cash contributor pitching in $3000. She also got $1800 as a in-kind contribution from the Friends of Frank Pizzella. Other notable contributions came from engineer Michael Pasonick who does business with just about every government agency in Luzerne County and has been implicated in the ongoing corruption scandal. Owners and employees of Apollo Electric chipped in $2000 and the owners of Popple Construction $2000.

This sends the wrong message

Indicted Pizzella heads W-B Area

A board member under indictment by the FBI was re-elected to the presidency of the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board on Monday, even as new directors were sworn in to replace two others caught up in the ongoing corruption investigation in the county.



Pizzella gets another term as Wilkes-Barre Area president


Six board members voted in favor of Pizzella, while two others, Lynn Evans and Robert Corcoran, abstained from voting. Maryanne Toole voted against Pizzella.


Yes, "everybody is innocent until proven guilty” as Joe Moran said but keeping him as board president tells us that nothing will change.



The arraignment of Pizzella on a conspiracy charge is scheduled for Dec. 18.

Petrilla rakes in the bucks

Luzerne County Democratic Commissioner Chair Maryanne Petrilla has raised $54,000 this year and has $78,000 cash on hand according to her latest campaign finance report. That is more money than all the row officer candidates running this year combined.

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Indicted Jury Commissioner Jerry Bonner gave her $500 but she sent it back. There are a few other names that are in the news listed in the report.

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Wilkes-Barre Area School Board President Frank Pizzella kicked in $125 for her golf tournament that is also listed on his CFR. Pizzella has been charged with conspiracy in a teacher job-selling scheme in 2004. I didn't know that she played golf.

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Michael Pasonick is the owner of an Architect/Engineering firm that does business with just about every government agency in Luzerne County made 2 donations totalling $1750 to Petrilla.

Pasonick was recently identified as the person who paid the bribe of $1400 to Housing Authority member Billy Maguire that was passed on by fellow board member Jerry Bonner. I wonder what the vig was in that deal? In one of the most creative excuses that I've ever heard Maguire said that he was reluctant to ask the housing authority for reimbursement of $1,400 he spent while attending a meeting of the National Leased Housing Association with Bonner in late January 2009 because of the debit card scandal and previous publicity that he was travelling the world on the taxpayer's dime when he was working in law enforcement. So he got Bonner to ask Pasonick to pick up the tab. At least he didn't try to double dip because records show he was not reimbursed by the authority. Bonner's attorney Mike Butera made the revelation about Pasonick. Butera has contributed $1000 to Petrilla.

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Sometimes this gets confusing. Patrilla's committee received contributions from Hazleton State Rep. Todd Eachus' and DA Jackie Mo Carroll then her committee sent money to Eachus and Jackie Mo's campaign committees. Scott Gartley kicked in $500 and Petrilla contributed $1000 to Tina Gartley's judicial campaign. I guess this is an example of 'you wash my back, I'll wash your's.' These people don't use their own money to go to all these events, the donor's pay for it. In addition to Gartley she contributed to 2 other Luzerne County judicial candidates. She sent $250 to Joe Musto and $125 to Bill Amesbury.

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In the row ofifce races she(her committee) gave $250 to Dem Prothonotary nominee Nancy Bellas who's husband has been indicted for taking a bribe and Democratic Controller hopeful Bob Morgan got $550.

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Some Luzerne County officials chipped in for the boss.

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Director of Assessments Anthony Alu $125

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County Solicitor Vito DeLucca $375

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Prison Warden Joe Piazza $500

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This one I find interesting. Former Commissioner Todd Vonderheid ( Bond Brother) who is now the head honcho of the local Chamber of Commerce chipped in $250. Vondy ran as a team with Greg Skrepenak for Luzerne County Commissioners telling people we didn't need home rule because we can trust them. That worked out well. Vondy quit before his term was up.

Pizella won't go quietly

Indicted Wilkes-Barre Area School Director Frank Pizzella showed up at the Wilkes -Barre Area Vo-Tech board meeting yesterday and handed out a press release that said he is not going anywhere.



“I will continue to serve as the President of the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board and as a member of the Wilkes-Barre Area Vo-Tech Board. I was elected in 2007 to serve the electorate and taxpayers, and I will continue to do just that...I will remain accessible to the public and therefore, I will be more than happy to answer any questions from the members of the press regarding School District and/or Vo-Tech business. In regards to any questions relating to the recent events of the past week, my comment is and will continue to be ‘no comment’ on the advice of my counsel due to the ongoing investigation.”



Anyone who knows Frank will tell you that he has moxy. He has been accused of taking part in conspiracy to pay a $5000 bribe to an unnamed school director in 2004 in return for helping someone get a teaching job. The Indictment lists 3 other unnamed unidicted co-conspirators. Three other school board members that also sit on the Vo-Tech Board have also been charged with corruption and two of them have resigned.

It looks like Pizzella wants a trial on these charges and so do I.

Tidbits

From the email:


The Morgan camp is going nuts because it was rumored that he promised the Deputy's job to Pizzella and if he goes, they are afraid that one of the other six might be Katsock who is his campaign manager. I can certainly see where they are concerned. Morgan also served as their campaign chair or treasurer.

Operation HEART kickoff

"All Democrats are not crooks, but all the crooks are Democrats.”-Luzerne County GOP Chairman Terry Casey

To reinforce that point yesterday we saw the Juvie Bothers, Michael Conahan and Mark Ciavarella, plead not guilty to a 48 count indictment. They previously plead guilty to 2 charges.

Jury Commissioner and Housing Authority Board Chairman Jerry Bonner also entered a plea of not guilty to taking a bribe. To top off a banner day W-B Area School Board President Frank Pizzella was indicted. All of them are elected Democrats.

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Our local elephants have a snappy new slogan to get the point across.

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Operation HEART: Honesty· Ethics· Accountability· Reform· Transparency

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Yesterday, the county Republican Party had a sparsely attended news conference in their shiny new digs in the Mid-town Village in Wilkes-Barre with PA State Supreme Court nominee Joan Orie Melvin as the headliner. Two of the three row officer candidates didn't even bother to show up. You still have to work on this party unity thing folks.

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Chairman Terry Casey started off the festivities reminding us that this is "the valley with a heart." A slogan that has been popular since the Agnes flood in 1972. Again I feel like we are living on Noah's Ark, before the flood-after the flood.

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That will and determination, that essential goodness, is still here. Unfortunately, it has been overshadowed by a corrupt political machine brought on by the perils of a one-party system. It’s the dirty little secret that we’ve all known about for years: cronyism, nepotism, teachers paying for jobs. One set of rules for those in power, another set of rules for the rest of us. So, what do we do to polish that tarnished image and to reclaim our reputation as the Valley With A Heart?

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Nothing short of a heart transplant. And that’s what we plan to do.We are the Republican Party of Luzerne County and I stand here today and pledge that the days of a one-party political system are over.

Zen has the whole speech.

Judge Melvin had this to say:

The most egregious case of judicial corruption and judicial abuse of power in our nation’s history actually occurred here in Pennsylvania, in Luzerne County. The judiciary violated these children. Within 5 minutes of being sworn in, they were escorted out in shackles to these personal profitable lock-ups. This is surreal. It is right out of a Charles Dickens’ novel.

She then recounted how she handled juvenile cases when she was judge in Pittsburgh. Non-violent kids didn't get locked up but were sentenced to community service.

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Dick Hughes was the next to speak and he was for positive change then touted that he has been endorsed by the Luzerne County Police Chiefs.

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The last speaker was Controller candidate Walter Griffith who stole the show. He was going to read his speech but put it aside and spoke from the heart. He endorsed the goals of operation HEART and added that he has been passionate about local government and the spending of your money. He knocked the local Dems sense of entitlement and pledged to "follow the money" whenever something doesn't pass the smell test. He complimented former Controller Steve Flood for his tenacity and said he will be just as tenacious.

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The program ended with Executive Director Renita Fennick singing the praises of Carolee Medico who didn't bother to show up.

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If Carolee were here, we’d have to give her the letter “R.”
If anyone knows reform, it’s Carolee Medico Olenginski.
For those of you who remember, Carolee took the courthouse by storm when she was first elected 12 years ago.
She took some steps that were unheard of – she came to work every day, stayed all day and kept track of her staff’s hours and days off.
She used the term “judicial corruption” long before it became a household word in Luzerne County.
It took courage to stand up for the people – especially when you find yourself standing alone – as Carolee often did. Many wished her well but ran for cover when she confronted corruption.
She was way ahead of the investigators and knew there was trouble under the dome. She was such a threat to corrupt officials that her 2001 opponent spent over $265,000 to unseat her.
We need to get Carolee back in office to finish the job that she started.


Register of Wills Candidate Gina Nevenglosky was also a no show.

A few other faces in the crowd were Commissioner Steve Urban and former State Senator Charlie Lemmond.