Many school board candidates in Centre County will not participate in upcoming forum
A number of local school board candidates are not participating in the League of Women Voters of Centre County’s Candidates’ Night for the upcoming primary election.
The league hosts a forum for each primary and general election where candidates are asked six questions and have 60 seconds to respond to each question. Contested races that will be included in the upcoming Candidates Night on April 25 are Centre County Judge of Court of Common Pleas, Benner Township board of supervisors, State College Borough Council, and Bellefonte and State College Area school boards.
A group of candidates running for the State College Area School District board, United for SCASD — Nathan Bish, Barry Fenchak, John Krajcovic and Michelle Young — announced they won’t participate and will instead hold a panel event the next evening.
“We have great respect for the League of Women Voters and their efforts to inform the community. For this Primary period, we have elected to host a United for SCASD candidate panel in order for the community to hear directly and fully from them. We look forward to the LWV candidate night in the Fall,” Young, chair of United for SCASD, wrote in an email.
A group running for the Bellefonte Area School District Board, Win4Bellefonte — Kimberly Weaver, Jennifer Barnhart, Darrell Sharp, Timothy Kessling and Patrick Buck — are also not participating, Marcella Hoffman, treasurer for the group, said in an email. She would not comment further on the decision.
The purpose of Candidates’ Night is to let voters ask questions and be informed about issues they want answers to before they vote, Susan Werner, Candidates’ Night chair, said during a phone interview. The steering committee of the LWVCC is disappointed the candidates won’t be participating, she said.
In both races, there are 11 candidates running for five open seats. Every candidate cross-filed, so the primary is an important election.
“It’s important for people to understand who they’re voting for, and why they support those people. And the Candidates’ Night has been the best opportunity for people to get an unbiased look at the candidates and hear them, in their own words, answer questions that the voters have submitted,” Werner said.
The league has held this event for decades, Werner said, but the past few times it’s been held, fewer and fewer Republicans have participated. She stressed that the league is non-partisan and that people can submit their questions online or at the event. The questions are reviewed by non-partisan screeners.
Many of these candidates participated in interviews with C-NET, which gives voters another chance to learn about the candidates.
Candidates’ Night is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. April 25 at the State College Municipal Building, 243 S. Allen St., State College. It will also be broadcast live on C-NET.
The United for SCASD panel event is scheduled for 6-7 p.m. April 26 at the Boalsburg Fire Hall, 113 E. Pine St., Boalsburg. The panel will be moderated by former SCASD board member David Hutchinson. Candidates will introduce themselves, share why they’re running for school board and then Hutchinson will moderate a discussion of questions that were submitted by the community, according to a press release. The event is open to the public.
The primary election is May 16.
