Four incumbents and two challengers are competing in the May primary election for four open school board seats representing Butler Area School District.

The school district, currently made up of over 5,000 students, serves families in Butler, Center, Clearfield, Connoquenessing, Oakland and Summit townships; and East Butler, Connoquenessing and Butler city.

Current school board members — Al Vavro, Nina Teff, John Conrad and Gary Shingleton — will need to defend their seats against challengers Leland Clark and Eric Reffert.

Shingleton, Vavro and Reffert cross-filed to appear on both ballots, while Teff, Conrad and Clark will only appear on the Republican ballot.

Three will proceed from each ticket to compete in the November election.

Al Vavro has been president of the Butler school board since 2019. A lifelong area resident who has made his home in Butler township since 1979, he has served on the board for the past 12 years.

“As an educator of over 40 years, I've seen the positive influence adults can have on the lives of students,” Vavro said. “I feel that I can provide my point of view as a lifelong learner in the field of education when making decisions regarding the academic, social, emotional and mental health resources for our students.”

He works as a substitute teacher in the Freeport Area School District, and was a teacher and an elementary principal in the Butler district for 37 years.

Nina Teff, a Butler Township resident, has served two separate terms on the school board, one from 2015 to 2019, and one since 2021. Teff served as president of the board in her first term, and was involved in hiring of superintendent Brian White.

“Originally, I ran back in 2015 because I thought that BASD could be excellent in every way,” Teff said.

She said she wanted to see excellent student education, high-performing staff and leaders who would make thoughtful, data-driven decisions.

“I saw opportunity in that space, and I wanted to help transform Butler,” she said.

She grew up in Louisiana and previously worked for 16 years in the oil industry as a petroleum engineer.

John Conrad has served on the school board for 20 years. He has worked as a mechanical engineer for 44 years, and said he recently retired from Westinghouse Electric Company. A Butler native, he graduated from Butler Area High School in 1976 and also attended BC3.

He said he first ran for school board to displace a former school director who “had no clue about the values and needs of our Butler community.”

He said he stayed because he realized the district needs a “common sense voice for the people on the school board.”

Conrad said he believes his experience as a dad and grandfather gives him a unique advantage “to the management of costs and capital expenditures.”

Shingleton, a Butler high alumnus, parent of two graduates and retired district high school teacher and coach, is running for his third term on the board.

According to past Butler Eagle reports, he has a bachelor’s degree in secondary education in social studies from Slippery Rock University and a master’s degree in labor relations and personnel administration from St. Francis University.

He was a teacher from 1979 to 2013, including eight years as a department chairman; coached boys and girls basketball, baseball and golf; has worked as an NCAA college baseball umpire since 1985; and is a past president of the Chesapeake Basin College Baseball Umpires Association.

Shingleton said he also worked in collective bargaining with the Butler Education Association when he was a teacher. He has been married for 38 years and has three grown children.

Shingleton did not reply to the following Q&A, which was sent to all candidates.

Leland Clark, a Center Township resident, previously served on the Butler school board and the Butler County Area Vocational-Technical School board. He has been an attorney for 22 years, focusing on family, criminal, juvenile and estate cases. He also owns a commercial building in the city and rents out offices.

“I want to make sure that all the good work that the administration and the teachers have accomplished in recent years is not undermined by more turmoil in the school board that oversees them,” Clark said.

Clark is chairman for the board of viewers, an entity that arbitrates disputes between landowners and the government, on behalf of the courts.

Reffert, a Pittsburgh native, moved to Butler in 2022. He resides in Summit Township and has worked in the food service industry for 10 years.

“I’m running because I’m concerned about the direction of our schools,” he said. “Too often, I see decisions being made that reflect political agendas rather than what’s best for our children.

“I believe it’s time for common sense, conservative values to return to the school board — values that honor God, country and community.”

Reffert emphasized being raised by a union-member father and stay-at-home mother who instilled in him a strong work ethic and “the importance of standing up for what’s right.”

Vavro: “If elected to another term on the board, I hope to continue to be part of the decision-making process in providing the necessary resources to meet the ever growing needs of our students along with being fiscally responsible to our taxpayers.”

Teff: “To continue on its current path of improving educational outcomes and experiences for students in the district.

“I will continue to support the efforts of creating high school curriculum that supports the newly developed ‘portrait of the graduate’ to prepare students for life after high school.”

Conrad: “My goal is to continue to strive for common sense education excellence and responsible fiscal spending.

“I have observed that many parents have disengaged from their children’s education. I firmly believe that for our students to learn well, parents must be supportive and engaged.

“While we have held community engagement meetings for the last two years, we need to find better more effective ways to engage parents to their students’ needs.”

Clark: “I would like to see the taxpayers, parents, administrators, teachers and other employees of the district all satisfied that the district is providing a good education for the students while at the same time using their money efficiently.”

Reffert: “My goals include increasing parental involvement, eliminating political indoctrination from the classroom, supporting our teachers in maintaining discipline and high standards, and ensuring that tax dollars are spent wisely and transparently.”

Vavro: Vavro’s priorities include maintaining a fiscally responsible budget, keeping students safe and addressing mental health concerns.

“One constant issue is walking the tightrope of finding the funding to provide the necessary resources for our student population along with maintaining a fiscally responsible budget that effectively utilizes our revenues without burdening our taxpayers.

“Unfortunately, security is always a concern for students and staff. We need to continue to stay current with reasonable safety initiatives to keep our schools as safe as possible.

“Another concern that I have encountered as an active educator is the growing mental health concerns that students bring with them into our school community. This issue effects all aspects of our schools and requires us to find therapeutic resources to address those needs so that academic learning is our highest priority.”

Teff: Teff’s priorities include dealing with the backlog of capital projects, raising the expectations for the district and addressing the retirement burden.

“Continue chipping away at the capital projects, allocating funds annually for capital projects, and utilizing grant funds as much as possible for eligible projects.

“Continue to stay abreast of the retirement burden and allocating funds to account for that future burden.

“Continue to support an environment that fosters excellence and the fundamental idea that children and people raise to the expectations set for them. Support the district and community leaders to raise expectations of students and of staff, which will also impact the community at large.”

Conrad: Conrad’s priorities include engaging parents, adjusting staffing to student needs and controlling unfunded mandates.

“We need to find better more effective ways to engage parents with their children’s education.

“As each generation passes through the school system, the decline in student population is getting smaller more slowly, approaching a more stable number. … We need to adjust our district staffing for the students we have and expect to have in the near future. We have been working hard to avoid layoffs, through natural attrition.

“Significant costs are driven by unfunded state and federal mandates. … We as taxpayers and citizens need to push back and tell our legislators to give control of our schools back to the local school boards.”

Clark: Clark’s priorities include paying attention to students living in poverty, revenue and student discipline.

“A large portion of our student body lives in poverty. The district must remain mindful that many students have challenges stemming from their home life that affect their ability to thrive in school.

“The district’s revenue always is just barely enough to cover the expenses of the district. The board must constantly be looking for ways to save money where possible, because tax increases are really not an option in a district such as ours.

“It is critical to maintain order and discipline in the school buildings. However, we must not ‘cancel’ students because they make one mistake. We need to have a fair and just sequence of gradually more severe consequences.”

Reffert: Reffert’s priorities include curriculum integrity, parental rights and financial responsibility.

“I will push for a return to teaching reading, writing, and arithmetic — free from woke ideology.

“I will work to make sure parents have a say in what their children are taught and are informed about major decisions affecting their kids.

“I will fight for accountability in spending and oppose unnecessary tax increases that burden working families.”

Vavro: “Unfortunately, the political climate and opposing viewpoints can cause great stress and impose financial burdens on all school districts.

“I understand the need for fiscal responsibility and efficiency. However, the education and career success of our students should be of tantamount importance to the economic and societal success of our community and country.

“The elimination of the Department of Education could result in drastic cuts for educational resources and increased tax burdens on an already burdened tax base.”

Teff: “That is yet to be seen. I like the concept of eliminating extra layers of control that come from a top-down vs. a bottoms up local approach. We have local school boards for a reason in this state.

“Overarching federal regulations minimize the community’s ability to set direction for their local school districts. Therefore, I am in favor of regulatory reform at both the federal and state level.

“In addition, federal and state governments mandate restrictions upon school districts that cost money, yet the governments do not fund those mandates. Those costs are born by the local taxpayer in Butler.

“Again, let locals have more say in deciding the direction of their community schools and what they would like to fund vs. it being dictated to them.”

Conrad: “I believe that the Department of Education will not be eliminated entirely. Prior to being made a cabinet level department in 1980, it was part of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare.

“Up until that time, my observation was that the education department worked reasonably well. I expect that if Congress passes legislation to ‘eliminate’ the Department of Education, it will likely be reassigned as part of a different cabinet level department as it once was.

“I believe the impact will be minimal after the shrinking pains are over, and the education department will function as it did before.”

Clark: “Last time that I was on the board, the district received about 10% of its revenue from the federal government. If the department is eliminated, but the revenue is still paid to the district, the impact will be minimal.

“The district, working together with the community, is more than capable of providing a quality education to our students without needing oversight or direction from the federal government.”

Reffert: “Eliminating the Department of Education would be a win for local control. Our district would gain greater autonomy to make decisions that reflect our community’s values, rather than being subjected to top-down mandates from Washington.

“I believe in empowering parents, teachers and local leaders — not unelected bureaucrats.”

Vavro: “Our current administration has always maintained a high level of fiscal responsibility in allocating and prioritizing budgetary funds. The current board is well aware of the fiscal climate of our tax base.

“Our superintendent in conjunction with our business manager work diligently to propose budgets that are educationally sound and fiscally responsible. Sometimes, difficult program and curriculum decisions have to be made to maintain a balanced budget. Our administrative team has also utilized funding sources from grant awards and philanthropic organizations to supplement some of our budgetary shortfalls.

“We are also appreciative of the Golden Tornado Scholastic Foundation for their financial support of many district programs. Our goal is always to incur either no tax increase or as minimal of an increase as possible.”

Teff: “Personally, I really dislike all taxes, and every year, in April, I get grumpy when I see how much we pay in income taxes. Unfortunately, Butler has had a depreciating tax base, and the majority of the school district’s budget comes from property taxes, so in past years, taxes were raised at various times.

“I believe that Butler is steady at this current tax rate, and that we should not add more burden on families, especially given the state of the economy with the inflation that we have seen over the past few years.”

Conrad: “My years of experience in project management and cost control make me particularly suited to being fiscally efficient and creative in cost reduction methods.

“Regarding taxes, industries compare themselves to other similar function competitors (base-lining). So, when comparing our taxes and costs to other school districts in (the state) and in our county, my research has shown me that the Butler school district is typically in the bottom 10% to 15% when ranked with the other 499 school districts when comparing cost per pupil (so, we are super efficient with dollars). Similarly, we are in the bottom 20% when it comes to taxpayer cost (reasonable cost).

“While no one likes to pay taxes, the summary is that Butler provides a very good education at a very reasonable cost when compared to the other districts in Pennsylvania, and even with districts in our county.”

Clark: “My goal for every budget cycle is to have a balanced budget with no tax increase. As the owner of a home, and a commercial building, in the district, I am very sensitive to the burden that school taxes place on the community.”

Reffert: “As a working-class American who understands the value of every hard-earned dollar, I will scrutinize the district’s budget line-by-line to ensure taxpayer money is being spent wisely and with full transparency. I believe in living within our means — just as families do every day.

“Our current tax rate is already a burden on many residents, especially seniors and working families.

“I oppose unnecessary tax hikes and believe we must look for ways to cut waste and prioritize spending that directly benefits student learning and safety.”

Vavro: “I think I’ve stated my long-term goals for the district in previous responses.”

Teff: “Continue to provide oversight (like a check and balance) on the vision and direction that BASD is heading. The board should also pay attention to not only annual budgets but also anticipated upcoming expenses within 5 to 10 year projections every year.

“The board should also monitor key metrics related to student success — like attendance trends, student assessment outcomes, behavior statistics, real-world, practical experiential learning opportunities, and ensuring that our students with special needs are thriving.”

Conrad: “In 2023, a lawsuit found that Pa.’s school funding to be unconstitutional and is severely underfunded. Further, the court ordered Pennsylvania to reform their school funding method.

“This still has not happened! We need to continue pressuring our state government to provide equitable funding.

“The school district must continue to improve student learning by engaging parents and students using proven teaching methods so that they are equipped to be the productive adults of the future. We need to continue to provide the foundation our students need to succeed in life, whether they are headed for college or directly to the workforce as in a skilled trade.”

Clark: “Ten to 20 years ago, districts began upgrading to lots of technology in the classroom. They also now issue Chromebooks to all students. Many classes utilize them during the school day and the students have to do many assignments in the evenings on them.

“We have learned that constant use of electronics has a substantial negative impact on students’ physical and mental health.

“As the district looks to the future and what is best for the students, we have to ask whether it is time to scale back the use of electronics in the school system.”

Reffert: “To prepare for the future, the school board must reinforce academic excellence, protect the rights of parents, invest in trade and vocational education, and create a safe, disciplined learning environment.

“We must remove divisive ideologies from the classroom and get back to basics — preparing our children to be strong, capable, and freethinking citizens.

“Long-term success also depends on strong partnerships with parents and the community, not government overreach.”