Voters in the Karns City School District will elect four Republican and four Democratic nominees for the school board in the May 17 primary.

There are five candidates. All five appear on the Republican and Democratic ballots.

The candidates are Michael D. Larimore, Eric Ritzert, Randall J. Forester, Shelia A. Hillwig and Michael Smith.

The winners will appear on the November general election ballot.

QUESTION - Do you favor using money from slot machine gambling to reduce property taxation in your school district? Explain your answer?

RITZERT: I do not feel that slot machine gambling in Pennsylvania will generate the revenue needed to offer any substantial property tax reduction. Furthermore, I am puzzled that the legislation requires school boards to actually raise the local earned income tax by 0.1 percentage point in order to qualify for any money under Act 72. By doing so, it basically erodes the savings that most working people could hope to see.

FORESTER: Right now, I do not favor using money from gambling to reduce property taxation for one main reason: we do not know if we will ever see any money from this proposal. It could end up being nothing or very little. Until there are guarantees, the answer is no. In addition, the proposal handcuffs the school board from doing its main duty: providing a quality education for the children and youth in our school district. There exists no solid benefit to the students, the school district or to the taxpayers.

HILLWIG: The issue of using funds from slot machines is complex and can't be addressed through a simple "yes" or "no" answer. School directors are faced with many challenges regarding this issue. Each of us would like to be able to see our constituents' property taxes reduced, but a different solution might be a better answer. A great deal of revenue must be generated at the state level through slot machines before we will ever see a benefit locally. I believe that my fellow directors and I need more information in order to make the best decision for our school district.

LARIMORE: Although I do not like gambling money in the mix with education, that is the hand we've been dealt. I am, though, in favor of property tax reform and I hope that this is only the first step in complete property tax relief for all homestead/farmstead exemptions in Pennsylvania. Act 72 certainly was not needed to do this for the individual farm and homeowners of the district and state.

SMITH: Did not respond.

QUESTION - Other than Act 72, what is the single biggest hurdle involving school finances?

RITZERT: The biggest financial hurdle that I see is that expenses are projected to increase at a faster pace than revenues. The increase in the costs of health care, cyber school tuition, transportation and special education programs continue to increase significantly. These increases will make it more challenging to balance the budget.

FORESTER: Financially, a major hurdle is continuing the fine fiscal restraint shown by previous school boards. We need to maintain low property taxes, limit budget increases and still provide for our teachers' and students' needs. Karns City School District has done a wonderful job of that in the past. I am fully confident that that standard will be met during my tenure. I will not allow otherwise.

HILLWIG: One financial hurdle that districts face is the decrease in federal support for instructional programs. Funding for remedial programs has been reduced over the past few years and is projected to decrease for the coming school year. Salaries, benefits and operational costs continue to increase, so programs must be trimmed just to break even. Districts that want to continue to expand technology or maintain remedial programs face a difficult decision when it comes to funding these things.

LARIMORE: Other than Act 72, there are unfunded and underfunded state and federal mandates that are left for the district taxpayers to cover the balance. Also, every year we are faced with rising healthcare and pension costs for district employees. We also cannot assume that our large local employers will always be here for that portion of the earned income tax that supplements the budget.

SMITH: Did not respond.

QUESTION - Where would you look first if you had to cut costs? What arguments would you use to convince your fellow school directors to follow your lead?

RITZERT: I would look at the non-academic or non-instructional areas of the budget. I believe that it is the primary responsibility of the school to provide students with an education. Therefore, that is where the resources should be allocated and focused.

FORESTER: Honestly, I do not believe we need to cut costs. Right now, if there were a need for additional revenues, I believe instituting a student activity fee to help maintain extracurricular activities would be appropriate.

HILLWIG: Many people might automatically think that cutting extracurricular activities would generate substantial savings for a district. The fact is, though, that extracurricular costs are a very small part of the overall budget. The savings would be minimal and in some cases, a one-time savings. Long-term saving comes through efficient operation of facilities and staff costs. While the savings through staff could result in a lower operating budget, it would be at the expense of services and programs to students. This would be a difficult and heart-wrenching decision to make. If need be, I would demonstrate the cost history of these two areas to my fellow board members.

LARIMORE: Fortunately at Karns City we have not needed to raise taxes for 11 years because of prudent investments, excellent management of funds and cooperation from all departments in trying to hold the line on their respective budgets.If I had to cut costs it would first be at the extra-curricular activities starting in the lower levels. I would not cut any costs in any academic program.

SMITH: Did not respond.

QUESTION - What other concerns do you have about the operation of your school district? What would you do to address those concerns?

RITZERT: I have a daughter that will be entering the school system in a few years. With many of the teachers, administrators and support staff personnel nearing retirement, I want to make sure that the district is able to fill those positions with quality candidates. I would like to see if there are ways to improve how we recruit, hire and retain the personnel we need to make our schools the best they can be.

FORESTER: I believe Karns City stresses sports but at the expense of other noble pursuits like the arts. We need to provide equally for students' varied pursuits.Secondly, we need to meet the varied educational/learning needs of our students in spite of the desire for standardization.Third, we need to bring technology into the classrooms and the homes of students. Fourth, we need to integrate the classroom with community (real world) experience.And lastly, in the face of the breakdown of community and family, the school needs to address not only the educational needs of students but also their emotional needs and provide for socialization and personal growth.

HILLWIG: I believe that the Karns City Area School District is a fine school district. My immediate concern is with meeting the mandates of No Child Left Behind. Curriculum must be constantly monitored and adjusted in order to insure that our students are receiving the instruction required to achieve at a high level. Teachers must be offered quality, purposeful professional development in order to always be aware of the best instructional practices. Principals must closely monitor instruction and offer appropriate feedback in order to help teachers grow professionally. All of these things must be carried out with one thing in mind - the students.

LARIMORE: We are very pleased at Karns City to have the means to offer students full-day kindergarten to start their basic education process, and in later years with avenues in high academics, technology classes, vo-tech and many extracurricular activities.The concern is maintaining and improving all areas without overtaxing. Short-and long-term planning are even more critical now in the face of Act 72. Other concerns are school safety and freedom from drug, alcohol and tobacco use. These can be accomplished by enforcing and creating strict policies, but just as important is to encourage open communication and involvement between parents, students, teachers, staff, administrators and board members at each grade level.

SMITH: Did not respond.