North Hills renames board room in honor of long-time school director Arlene Bender

The North Hills School Board has recognized a long-time colleague who died last summer by renaming the board room at the Central Administration Center in her honor.

The board meeting room on 6th Avenue is now the Arlene J. Bender Leadership Center and features a memorial wall on which a plaque with her photo has been placed.

“It was my extreme privilege to work for and with such an amazing woman,” said Superintendent Patrick Mannarino. “Arlene was always willing to talk with people, to listen to their opinions and concerns, to make each person feel that they’d been heard and that they mattered.

“She saw people for who they were, overlooked their flaws and accepted and celebrated differences and diversity. She treated everyone she met with respect and dignity,” Mannarino said.

Bender, who served on the board for nearly 35 years, died on Aug. 12. She was 75.

Bender was a retired real-estate agent and former teacher. She served on the North Hills School Board for four years in the 1980s and rejoined the board in 1991. She continued to serve until her death.

The meeting room was rededicated at the school board’s April 4 meeting, which was attended by Bender’s husband, Jim Bender, and other members of her family.