Staffing, infrastructure top of mind for Allegheny Valley School Board candidates

After the May primaries slimmed the candidate pool by two, the five remaining contenders for Allegheny Valley School Board say the main issues they’ll seek to tackle are teacher retention and infrastructure improvements.

The five — two of whom have previous board experience — will compete for four open seats.

A familiar face in the district, Nino Pollino, 66, has sat on the board for most of the last three decades and currently serves as president.

Though Pollino recently switched his party affiliation from Democratic to Republican, he managed to secure the highest percentage of votes in the Democratic primary and the second highest in the Republican race.

The retired Cheswick resident said no one issue is most important to him, but he’d continue to focus on the district’s ongoing facilities upgrades like the recently completed turf field and the ongoing renovations in the Springdale Jr.-Sr. High School lobby.

Pollino said he’d also like to improve test scores and educational quality for students.

“They’re all things we have to do simultaneously,” he said.

If reelected, Pollino said, he’d also like to work toward a better relationship with Springdale after negotiations over the continued use of the borough’s Veterans Field fell through in 2023.

Pollino holds a bachelor’s degree from Grove City College and an associate degree in computer science from Penn State.

A newcomer to the board, Rebecca Mundok, 44, said her primary goal would be to attract teachers to the school district.

Mundok, a Democrat, serves as the general manager of RealTime Arts, a nonprofit theatre company. She has also directed the high school’s fall play for the past several years.

She said she has two children in the district, which offered her a unique perspective among the candidates.

“With students still in school, I felt it was a good time to run,” Mundok said.

If she is elected, Mundok said, she would focus on contract negotiations with teachers in 2027 with the hope of retaining talent at Allegheny Valley.

Like Pollino, she’d continue the district’s facility renovations, she said, especially to make schools more accessible for people with disabilities.

Mundok holds a bachelor’s degree in theater from Point Park University.

Colleen Crumb also has experience on the board.

The Republican was appointed to fill a vacancy on the board in 2022 but later lost a bid to retain her seat in the 2023 primary.

She said her mantra is “happy teachers, happy students.”

To that end, she said her top priority would be to draw teachers, custodians and other staff into Allegheny Valley.

Crumb said more teachers would hopefully also improve student test scores.

“The education of the students is my top priority,” she said.

Crumb works as a paralegal and holds a bachelor’s degree from Point Park.

If he were elected, Fred Derringer, 50, said he hopes he can bring the board, administration and local municipalities together.

The Democrat said he hopes to leave politics out of the equation.

“It’s time for new ideas and a new way of bringing people together,” Derringer said.

A graduate of Springdale Jr.-Sr. High School, he said he hopes to work toward better parking solutions in the district and a plan for the lot of the now-demolished Colfax Elementary School.

In addition to improved test scores, Derringer would also like to see more opportunities for students interested in the skilled trades.

Derringer works as a sales manager at a machining company.

Staffing is the primary concern for Paul Perriello, 39.

The Republican currently serves as a police sergeant for the Springdale Police Department.

“If I were elected, I would do everything in my power to hire staff and keep staff here,” Perriello said.

That could involve better pay rates for teachers or counting experience from other schools in the district’s pay scale, he said.

Perriello said he’d also like to see a greater emphasis on safety at Allegheny Valley and more school resource officers in the district.

Election Day is set for Nov. 4. The four new board members would take their seats in January.