Penn Hills School Board results: 7 candidates earn party nods for November general election
Newcomers and incumbents for the Penn Hills School Board will be making an appearance on the November ballot.
According to unofficial election results from the Allegheny County Office of Elections, out of nine candidates, Democratic newcomers Monica Colbert, 51, Dawn Golden, 54, and Reginald Hickman, 51, and incumbent Nicole Richardson, 47, will be vying for four four-year term seats.
Richardson also earned a spot on the Republican ticket because she was cross-filed. She is joined by incumbents Joseph Capozoli, 71, Evelyn Herbert, 63, and Marisa Jamison, 55.
Colbert, a Democrat, was the top vote-getter on the Democratic ticket with 2,938 votes. Capozoli, who cross-filed, was the top Republican earner with 613 votes.
Colbert previously told TribLive that, if elected, she looks forward to collaborating with the district’s teachers, administration, parents and taxpayers to help students. Capozoli said he wants to continue building on the district’s financial and educational progress.
Golden said she would work to see the needs of the whole child are addressed to ensure all students can thrive, support educators by ensuring they have the necessary resources to support the students and to ensure every family is engaged. Hickman wants to use his past experience of writing school improvement plans to help the district intervene if a student is scoring below their grade level or is not scoring proficiently.
Richardson said the most pressing issue is the district’s ability to maintain fiscal responsibility to avoid state receiverships. She said work needs to continue despite the district being released from financial recovery status by the state in May 2024.
If reelected, Herbert said she wants to help the district’s PSSA test scores increasee. Jamison said if she’s reelected, she would work toward improving mental health services offered to students.
Democratic newcomers Qiana Buckner, with 1,525 votes, and Mark Banner Sr., 1,207 votes, were unable to clinch a spot on the November ballot.
Haley Daugherty is a TribLive reporter covering local politics, feature stories and Allegheny County news. A native of Pittsburgh, she lived in Alabama for six years. She joined the Trib in 2022 after graduating from Chatham University. She can be reached at hdaugherty@triblive.com.
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