10 candidates seek 5 seats on Riverview School Board
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Five Democrats and five Republicans, are squaring off for five open seats on Riverview School Board in the Nov. 7 election after votes split along party lines in the primary.
Each candidate was asked for general biographical information and to answer the question:
What do you view as the most pertinent issue for Riverview School District, and how do you plan to address it?
Melissa Botta-Havran (R), Oakmont resident
Age: 41
Education: BA in political Science and history from the University of Pittsburgh, master’s in education from Point Park University
Occupation: schoolteacher and author
Previous public office, if any: no
The first issue facing our district is abstract, rather than something tangible such as a budget or taxes, is issue much more pressing, and as a parent and taxpayer it concerns me greatly. The issue of which I am speaking is tolerance.
I see various signs in yards all over our district signaling to others that we are a community of love and tolerance, yet when it comes down to it, I sense a division. This race has brought to light the division between Democrats and Republicans in the form of arguments at the polls to engaging in social media mudslinging in a race with total disregard that many of us running have children that can read the comments made about their loved ones. This nonsense needs to stop.
It’s a small community, and in the words of John F Kennedy, “For, in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children’s future. And we are all mortal.”
Let’s remember this same sentiment at the polls and as we all seek to make this community and school district better for our children, and perhaps someday, our grandchildren.
Second is the issue of providing more focus and energy into improving our special education department, so we are offering out students with diverse needs the highest level of education in the least restrictive environment. The umbrella of special education casts a wide net in our community since the onset of COVID in 2020, and therefore more funding should be allocated to accommodate a wider range of special needs and focus on getting them the resources most valuable to helping them succeed academically.
To say we have reached a funding cliff on these issues is not acceptable, especially considering developmental delays, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have increased 17% from 2019-2021. Two weeks to slow the curve turned into years and increased taxes with no improvements to help our most vulnerable population, our children, receive the services and accommodations they need to rebound from the impact of the pandemic.
As a teacher, I have firsthand experience as to the impact the pandemic has inflicted on our children. Mental health and special education resource funding should be at the forefront on our school board’s agenda.
Jennifer K. Chaparro (D), Oakmont
Age: 44
Education: BA, University of Pittsburgh, communications and history of art and architecture
Occupation: brand manager in the office of communications and marketing for the University of Pittsburgh
Previous public office: I am currently president of Riverview School Board and finishing my first term. I am also the marketing communications delegate.
Finances are always the most challenging issue to manage for public schools, as we are never funded properly from the state and federal levels, and it’s an ongoing balancing act to meet the needs of the district with increasing costs and flat funding.
My goal is always to be as creative as possible and judicious with taxpayer money and making sure our needs are met while being as fiscally responsible as possible. I want to continue to improve our buildings, facilities and educational resources, and offer even more for our students, but doing so in a financially responsible manner.
Leanne Jacobs-Rohan (D), Oakmont
Age: 42
Education: bachelor’s degree in youth ministry with minors in psychology and gender studies from Eastern University.
Occupation: service coordinator with Familylinks and a massage therapist for Health Horizons.
Previous public office, if any: no
Safety is the most pertinent issue to me, and I want to ensure the safety standards are the best available so the students and staff can focus on their tasks at hand. I also want to ensure books remain accessible and history curriculum includes all backgrounds.
To address this, I would like the schools to offer more assemblies and speakers to give the students an opportunity to expand their worldview. My kids are in third grade and kindergarten, and my wish for them is to love learning and make positive, healthy connections in a safe environment. I would like to contribute to the school board to ensure this happens.
Isabelle McDade (R), Verona
Age: 43
Education: Riverview graduate, Class of 1998
Occupation: certified nurse’s aide
I believe that the most pertinent issue to be relationships and transparency with parents and educators, and how community as a whole is addressing the mental health of students post-covid, as wells as educational loss and the loss of interest in attending school due to trauma and economic hardships that are affecting families.
I plan on addressing this by presenting it to the board and educators as a voice of someone who is living the experience and being a voice for the lower economic community that I believe is not being heard from, represented or considered in the conversations.
Nick Paradise (R), Oakmont
Age: 37
Education: Riverview High School 2004; Penn State University ’08, BA in journalism with sociology minor
Occupation: external communications manager, Peoples Natural Gas
Previous public office, if any: N/A, first-time candidate
The Riverview community needs to better understand why — despite serving 30% fewer students than it did a decade ago, adding multiple high-end housing developments and receiving record levels of government funding the last few years — the district has raised taxes five times since 2012 and claims more increases are needed.
I intend to provide oversight on financial matters and other inner workings of the district so taxpayers have transparency on how their money is used, and we identify and halt unnecessary expenses. I want parents to feel confident that Riverview is making wise choices financially and in educating our children, recognizing the district exists to serve us, as citizens, and not the other way around.
Antonio Paris (D), Oakmont
Age: 29
Education: juris doctorate from Ava Maria School of Law; master of studies in law from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law; bachelors of arts in sociology and anthropology from Baldwin Wallace University
Occupation: attorney
Previous Public Office: current school board director for Riverview School District
As a current school board member, I’ve seen firsthand the impact we can have on the district just from one meeting. In my opinion, the school board needs to be more involved and present for our students. This means meeting with students, talking with their parents and their teachers and other staff to ask what things they need out of our district and out of the board. We work for them, the residents of Oakmont and Verona!
The Pennsylvania School Board Association would tell us that our job is to be overseeing the operations while leaving the “on-the- ground work” up to the administrators. It’s important to remember that this is only a recommendation and not a state law/requirement based on school code. In a smaller community, such as Riverview, it’s just not always possible to stay up in “helicopter,” so they like to say. It’s necessary for us to have a more integrated approach with managing a district of this size.
Thus, my goal in this role is to be more accessible to our student leaders and their organizations; to continue hosting meetings with those student leaders, parents, etc.; and to make sure students in particular have the voice to reflect on the positives and negatives, something I wish I had when I was a student leader.
Roger Pogoda (D), Oakmont
Age: 41
Education: BS in mechanical engineering from Robert Morris University
Occupation: data collection coordination engineer at Motional, a self-driving car company based in Boston
Previous public office, if any: none; and I have no political aspirations beyond school board
The current mental health crisis facing our children is the issue that keeps me up at night. We’re finally learning that there is no single, one-size-fits-all solution to help everyone. We need to figure out, as a smaller district with limited resources, how do we make every child and their caretakers feel like their needs are being met and their concerns are being addressed. This is simply too important an issue to let politics get in the way.
If elected, I will make myself available to the community. I want to hear concerns; I want questions; I want to know where we haven’t been good enough in the past. And then I want to work with every member of the board (not just those on the same ticket as myself) to do everything in my power to make sure every one of our kids feels safe and welcomed at Riverview schools.
Colette Saxon-Kmetz (R), Oakmont
Age: 36
Education: bachelor of Science in biology with a minor in psychology from High Point University
Occupation: operations communication coordinator
Previous public office, if any: no prior public office
I strongly believe in having a thriving extracurricular environment that fosters a robust physical and psychological environment. This will in turn bolster the educational excitement of our students and encourage an increase in families to call Verona/Oakmont home.
Erin Schuetz (D), Oakmont
Age: 49
Education: master’s degree, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, student affairs in higher education; bachelor’s degree, Westminster College, broadcast communications major, speech minor
Occupation: student services specialist, University of Pittsburgh, 17 years working with students in higher education
Previous public office: none
I feel it’s important to continue forward movement in addressing issues around equity, efficiency and engagement. I will work to ensure resources that remove barriers to personal success for our students are available for faculty, staff and administration.
I believe that the best approach to responsible decision-making is using data, statistics, best practices and benchmarking. I will provide collaborative, rational, ethical and responsible oversight for our district and community.
Seth Wermager (R), Oakmont
Age: 33
Education: bachelor of arts in English with secondary education focus; master’s in educational leadership
Occupation: Teacher
Previous public office, if any: none
There are important decisions on the horizon for the board; it’s only a matter of time before decisions will have to be made regarding boys who want to participate in girls sports. For the sake of fairness and safety, we need to make sure we have leadership who will ensure our girls will only compete against other girls for a spot on the team.
Also, how we spend our tax dollars is a pertinent issue. For example, we spent tens of thousands to install unisex, single-use bathrooms in the high school. We could have done a more simple remodel and put money toward the arts or sports programs that we all fear are in jeopardy of losing.