001It's my favorite time of the year. >> I'd like to call this meeting to order and first ask for a motion of an election of a temporary board president. >> I nominate Valerie Fleer as temporary board president. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I. >> Any opposed? >> Okay. Is yours? >> Okay. Uh we are here on Monday, December 1st, 2025 at 7:30 p.m. in Mount Lebanon High School of Room D205 for the reorganization meeting of the board of school directors. Please stand for the pledge of allegiance. >> I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Okay. First up, we have the presentation of certificates of election for newly elected
002members uh and the oath of office to be administered by magisterial district judge Hillary Wheatley. She has certific. >> Okay. Excellent. merge those items. >> All right, >> Mrs. Berdick, would you like to come up with your family? >> Yes. >> All right. Uh, right hand up, left hand. There you go. All right. Repeat after me. I, Melinda Berdick, >> I, Melinda Berdick, >> do solemnly swear >> that I will support, obey, and defend >> the Constitution of the United States >> and the Constitution of this Commonwealth >> and and the Constitution of this Commonwealth >> and that I will discharge the duties >> of my office with fidelity. >> There you go. CONGRATULATIONS. WE'LL do signatures of everybody at the end. Okay. >> All right. Uh Mrs. Campanaro. All right. Right hand up, ma'am.
003Repeat after me. I, Becky Michelle Campano, >> I, Becky Michelle Campano, >> do solemnly swear >> that I will support, obey, and defend >> the Constitution of the United States >> and the Constitution of this Commonwealth. >> and the Constitution of this Commonwealth >> and that I will discharge the duties >> of my office with fidelity. >> CONGRATULATIONS, MR. CLOCKARDY. >> UHHUH. >> YEAH. P. Clocky >> I, Timothy P. Clocky, >> do solemnly swear >> that I will support, obey, and defend >> I will support >> support, obey, and defend the Constitution of the United States >> the Constitution of the United States >> and the Constitution of this Commonwealth. >> the Constitution of this Commonwealth. >> And I will discharge the duties >> discharge the duties >> of my office >> with fidelity. >>
004CONGRATUL LET'S get in. >> Yeah. Yeah. Go ahead. There's not. There's never a wrong side. When you're ready. >> All right. Right hand up. I, Joy Eileen Given >> I, Joy Eene Given, >> do solemnly swear >> that I will support, obey, and defend >> the Constitution of the United States >> and the Constitution of this Commonwealth >> and the Constitution of this commonwealth. >> And I will discharge the duties >> of my office >> with fidelity. Congratulations, Thank you, Judge Wheatley. Roll call, please. Oh, we'll give uh give Miss Given a moment over there. Roll call, please. >> Mrs. Berdick, >> here. >> Dr. Campanero, >> here. >> Mrs. Crabel, >> here. >> Mr. Clocky, >> here. >> Miss Flecher, >> here. >> Mrs. Gellman >> here. >> Miss Given >> here. >> Mr.
005Hoffman >> here. >> Mr. Wland >> here. >> Mr. Adams >> here. Miss Antunes is not with us tonight. All members are present. Thank you. I now open the floor to nominations from the board for the uh election of president to serve for a term for one year. I would like to nominate uh my current vice president, Brena Crrael. Uh I've decided after five years in board leadership that I'd rather sit in the peanut gallery and participate in that way. Um, and it would be my honor to nominate Brena, who I, Miss CrarAel, who I've had the pleasure of working closely with over the past year, uh, with the administration to ensure the smooth operation of the board and communication, collaboration, and consensus building among its members. Uh, so I nominate Mrs. Brena Crabel. >>
006Second. >> Any other nominations? All right. Roll call, please. >> Motion to close the nominations. >> Make a motion to close the nominations. >> I so move. >> Second. >> Okay. All in favor? >> I. >> Any opposed? Okay. Uh, roll call, please. I'm sorry. I It's like I forgot how to do this already, even though it's been five years. Uh, any discussion of the nomination? anything to say? >> Um, wow. Uh, 18 years in higher ed and education brought my passion to this place. I knew it was something that was always near and dear to my heart. And if you know me well, so is our community. So much so, in fact, I have my Lebo socks on right now. But I am looking forward to continue to serve. you know, starting two years
007ago, we started at a a pretty interesting time where we had a lot of work to do. And we are now um from survival to thriving. And I'm really excited to continue the torch with our leadership, continue to work and make us a brighter, better community, district, and just fellow members. So, thank you all so much to the board for trusting me, and I look forward to an amazing year with you all. Thank you so much. Any additional discussion of the nomination? >> Yeah, I would like to say I'm I'm excited uh for you. I'm excited for this vote. Um I know that you are prepared to take on this leadership role. uh you did step in one one time to to lead a meeting uh in in your current role and you did that
008very well considering uh you know the added responsibilities that that come with it. So uh I will be excited for the next year to see you move into this role um and look forward to voting for you in a few moments. >> Thank you. >> Okay. >> Any additional discussion? Roll call, please. For real. >> Mrs. Berdick, >> I. >> Dr. Campanero, >> I. >> Mrs. Crabel, >> I. >> Mr. Clocky, >> I >> Miss Fleer, >> I. >> Mrs. Gellman, >> I >> Miss Given, >> I >> Mr. Hoffman, >> I >> Mr. Wland, >> I >> All right. Right. >> I don't know who I even answered for. It was just my place and >> it's all good. >> You have to do the combination. >> We only do this one once. >>
009It's okay. >> I didn't even >> All right. Now to get me back to the meeting. And now we would like to open the floor for vice president nominations. >> Mrs. Cradle, I'd like to uh nominate uh Mr. Todd Hoffman uh for vice president. Um I've had the pleasure of of working with Mr. Hoffman over the last couple years in this capacity. Um, I've come to appreciate, uh, his, uh, his dedication to service, uh, to advocacy, um, his willingness to collaborate, uh, with his fellow board members, uh, to listen, uh, sincerely, uh, to to consider thoughtfully, uh, and to to vote with his conscience. Um, I have confidence that if the board uh, supports my nomination that he would serve well as vice president. >> Thank you. Second. >> Second. >> Did you second? >>
010Okay. Now we can open the floor for any questions. >> Any other nominations? >> Eva, >> I'd like to nominate Melinda Berdick for vice president. Um, and I have a a little write up that I wanted to to just vocalize. Um, before I explain why I'm nominating her, I just wanted to begin with principles that kind of guide my thinking. So, anyone who knows me knows that I value best practices and look for how they can be implemented in whatever work I'm involved in. PSBA is clear and effective that effective governance requires preparation, transparency, structured processes, and diverse perspectives. These are the standards that should guide this vote and shape our leadership for the coming year. With that in mind, Miss Berdick has demonstrated consistently over three and a half years of service and now
011reelected to a second full term what steady, thoughtful leadership looks like. She comes to every meeting organized, well-prepared, and fully engaged. And she is unafraid to ask clarifying questions that elevate our discussions. She pays attention to the details, puts in the work, and comes in knowledgeable and well-versed in the issues, bringing perspectives that strengthen our decision-making, even when challenging assumptions. I appreciate that Mrs. Berdick and I don't always agree. I actually like that we don't agree because her willingness to raise a different or unpopular viewpoint is exactly what strong board leadership requires. She asks the questions others might overlook or avoid, pressing for clarity on budget assumptions, resource allocation, and the real impact of our decisions on students and staff. That kind of clarity and courage strengthens both our conversations and our governance. Our board
012is at its best when the range of perspectives is on the table, and Mrs. Berdick models that productive dialogue. She listens, engages directly, and keeps the focus where it belongs, making the best decisions for our students. Last year when she was told she was ineligible to be considered for the VP role because it was in her final year of she was in her final year of her term. She stepped away graciously but her commitment never changed. She kept showing up exactly as she had always had prepared, invested, and fully engaged. This year she has again put herself forward because she wants to serve the full board and she has the time and capacity for this leadership role. Her strengths, thorough preparation, thoughtful analysis, and strong behind-the-scenes follow-through are exactly the qualities that will complement and
013support our new president, Mrs. CrarAel. Crarael's leadership and strengthen our board in the year ahead. I want to acknowledge our incoming president, Mrs. CrarAel. Congratulations. I respect anyone willing to take on this big responsibility. I also want to acknowledge Mr. Hoffman. He and I ran together, and I hold a great deal of respect for him. My nomination of Mrs. Berdick is not personal. It reflects the dedication, advocacy, and consistent involvement that she has demonstrated as a board member. If Mr. Hoffman is elected, he will have my full support. I simply believe that at this moment, Mrs. Berdick's readiness and commitment make her the most qualified and strongest choice to serve as vice president in the year ahead. Thank you. >> Second. >> Thank you. >> Floor is open for any comments, any discussion, >> any
014additional nominations? make a motion to close the nominations. >> I make a motion to close the nominations and floor is open for any comments. >> Well, I'd be happy to make some comments. Um, the first thing I'd like to mention, um, is that we owe it to each other and to the community and the role that we've been elected to to make our decisions tonight at the table, all nine of us, um, and to kind of avoid um, politicking behind the scenes. And each of us deserves to be heard in a p public meeting. So, um, if you have your mind made up, I would just ask you to open it. Um really on any subject that's on the board table um I urge you to listen first. I've been a candidate with uniquely every
015single person um at this table at one time or another and every one of you has indicated that you value listening um and being heard. So, a little background. Um, a year ago, I inquired with Val about um the possibility of being um considered for vice president. And I was informed, I hadn't known this um in advance, but I was informed that it's necessary um to have a few years in front of you and not be in the final term um of your of your year, which I guess was disqualified Aaron and then um thereby me as well. So, it's something I didn't know about, but instead, um, I worked very hard over the last year, um, to confirm not only my interest, but my aptitude and ability for this role. Um, it factored heavily
016into my December decision to run again for reelection um, with you, and I'm glad that I did. So, um I didn't come up short on any votes last year, but in fact, um just stepped aside and I've been very supportive of Brena. Speaking of Brena, I would love to work more closely with my friend Brena. You don't really pick a running mate um like you do in Washington DC, but the board as a whole chooses those attributes um that complement one another. So, um Brena and I have a great relationship as she also has a great relationship with Todd. We first became friends as running mates in 23. Um, and our friendship have included like the gamut. I don't know, showing up for one another at a family funeral, at a celebration of a graduation,
017sending encouraging notes, even sermons um to each other. So, we uh we do compliment each other well and are fond of each other. Um, we have different strengths as I believe everybody at this table does and um, what I bring is, uh, you know, the hometown experience. I've been here for a long time. Um, having older kids is really important as we consider, um, that so many things that impact our decisions impact high school opportunities and development and preparation for postsecary. Uh, we have different personalities. That's a great thing. Um, I'm one who dives into the detail. I read every word twice or more. I take my time. I ask clarifying questions. I have 18 months of service under different leadership for perspective um to add to our shared two years. When I talked to
018Brena about seeking this role, she indicated that a lot happens behind the scenes. So, there's a lot of, in other words, timeconsuming but not visible uh work. And that's actually perfect for me with uh kids flown off to college and a flexible job I do have the time to put into being vice president. And I envision it looking a little different than it has. I'd love to see us communicate better as a team. Goodnatured, friendly, respectful communication. Um I believe the whole board should have access to the answers that the public receives in their public comment or to their public comment. Um, I will seek and welcome feedback from you um and strive to make decisions as a consensus of nine of us and that's our role as defined by the PSBA. I believe that
019ideas, discussion um and thoughts should be encouraged whatever way um is best for you as colleagues. I've met with several of you over coffee or on the phone um to better prepare for our decisions. Um, it's inevitable that there's a learning curve to bard service. Um, in 22 Jake was president and um, I have a really fond memory that uh, he and I met for coffee a couple times to clarify things that I had uh, mixed up on. And he said to me in those meetings and it stuck with me um, that we're all equals on this board and I just hold the gavvel and run the meetings. um we are all valued and bring important perspectives and that's what I want for uh the other team members to have especially our newer board members
020to you my newer board members I acknowledge that our year had some tricky and sticky situations which um I believe is not unusual um the same thing happened in 23 um where there was some friction between uh those who have done it before and those who hadn't And I do wish there had been more incumbents. In 23, we had six of us, which was like a full a full house. Um, three of us returning and three new ones. Um, and I suppose that's why I often wish to loop other people in. Um, is to share their perspective. But, um, throughout the candidacy stage and all it brought, I learned a lot about each one of you. Um, and I have respect for how you think and how you make decisions and what level of involvement's
021important to you. So, now that we've arrived um, in these seats, I expect all those bumps to smooth out. And for everyone at this table, I believe we should all be included and respected for our ideas, our values, our experiences, and the contributions that they bring. So, I see smooth sailing and collaborative thinking ahead. I guess the last thing I'd want you to know as you consider me for VP is that I have um endeavored to prove to you my willingness to advocate at the state level as a voting delegate and a PSBA and Shazda conference attendee. I have invested my personal time in continuing education related to board service. For me, continuing ed, whether it's been related to policy or finance or legal or communication, they all sharpen me for the role ahead, whatever
022seat I sit in here. Um, and I guess I have to get used to the elder role, but I'm now the third most senior board member with the other two having completed their seasons in board leadership. And I have lots of VP experience. Um, shockingly, I counted them up. I have 17 years as a parent in this school district. consecutively and um I extend my concern to our district beyond my own family's interests. You can trust me and I have witnessed what happens when trust is broken and it results in reduced communication and we all suffer. Throughout my reelection year, you've heard my why plenty of times. We've all repeated them. I have more to offer here. I'm not finished yet. Um with three years behind me and four years ahead, I'm not close to
023the end of anything. So, I will continue to offer informed and content related input and suggestions, and I will seek yours. I will continue to build relationships and trust, and I will seek yours. And my board service has been defined by honesty, curiosity, commitment, and integrity, and I value yours. >> Thank you for your comment. >> Anyone else? Yeah, I'm happy to provide a statement as well. Uh, I am a person of a few words, so I will say a few words at the moment. Uh, I'm I'm honored to to serve on this board with with all of you. Uh, and also honored for the nomination and the opportunity to step into a leadership role uh here at the board table. Uh this is something I've I've thought deeply about just as I did prior
024to uh running to serve on the board initially. Um, I tend to consider my moves uh quite long before I make them to ensure that a I understand the the role itself and be understand the the needs uh both for myself in that role as well as the the needs of those that that I will be serving. Uh I would look very much forward to working alongside Brena. uh we have a uh strong collaborative relationship and collaboration is something that I I I always seek to achieve in the work that I do whether that be uh professionally uh at work or here at the board table. It's very important that uh we work well together also that we um have a um strong understanding of of the governance role of board members. um we are
025here to um provide guidance and support um and um we're not here to make uh day-to-day decisions that the administration is here here to do. So uh I would appreciate the the support of of those of you here. I I'm very much looking forward to uh working with our our new board members uh in the weeks, months, and years ahead. And uh that's all I have to say for now. Thank you. >> Any other comments? >> Um I just want to make a quick clarification and I apologize for any misunderstanding. Um but just so the public and fellow board members are aware, folks are eligible to serve in leadership roles in their final year of board service. Um what I think um uh Mrs. Berdick and Mrs. Gellman might be referencing is it prior to
026last year's reorganization meeting I did indicate that it would be my last year in board leadership and that I was hoping to serve with a vice president who had room to grow to learn the position alongside me and hopefully to take it over. Um and uh at that time the other folks who were seeking the nomination or or potentially interested uh were in their final year of board service being um Mrs. Gensel who agreed not to seek the nomination and then Miss Berdick who I spoke with um and also did not seek the nomination. So I did just want to clarify that. Um, sorry if there was any uh misunderstanding or confusion, but I think all board members are eligible to serve in board leadership at any point. Um, correct me if I'm wrong, during
027their term. Anything else? Any other comments? >> Roll call. So, we are going to have a roll call vote. Are they going to vote? >> It's a voice vote. >> So, it will be a voice vote. >> Yeah, it's you'll uh make a voice vote. So, you'll verbally state the name of the candidate who you support and we will keep track of that and then whoever has the most votes will prevail. >> Okay. Roll call, please. >> Mrs. Berdick. >> Berdick. >> Dr. Campanero. >> Hoffman. >> Mrs. Crrael. Hoffman >> Mr. Clocky >> Berdick >> Miss Fleer >> Hoffman >> Mrs. Gellman >> Berdick >> Miss Given >> Hoffman >> Mr. Hoffman >> Hoffman >> Mr. Wland >> Hoffman That's six votes for Mr. Hoffman and three for Mrs. Berdick. >> Okay. >> All right.
028Mr. Hoffman, if you would like to resume your seat. >> He can or he >> would you like to stay there for the meeting? >> Okay. All right. So, moving on. We are moving to comments from residents and taxpayers who've previously requested to speak. Anyone want to speak? >> No one has requested to speak. So we are moving to questions and comments from the residents. So this public comment period is open to residents and taxpayers regarding matters of concern, official action or deliberation which or may be before the board. The commenters should begin by stating their name. Comments are limited to three minutes and we will notify commenters when their time has expired. Questions requiring follow-up will be referred to the administration for later response. Comments by public participants are of their own and should
029not be assumed by the statements of the district. The Mount Lebanon School District is committed to providing a safe, inclusive, and welcoming school environment that recognizes and celebrates diverse identities within our community so everyone feels a sense of belonging. Anyone in the audience would like to speak? Okay, I think we are good. All right, so that concludes our reorganization meeting. Our next meeting will be December 8th, 2025, 7:30 p.m. a joint regular discussion meeting in this room, room D205 at Mount Mount Lebanon High School. And it will also be on Zoom. Can we have a motion to adjurnn? >> So move. >> Second. Yeah.