ALLENTOWN, Pa. - Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk and new acting school district Superintendent Carol Birks met for breakfast Thursday at Hamilton Family Restaurant to get to know each other. Their conversation was recorded for use on 91.3 WLVR.
While dining on eggs with rye toast (Mr. Tuerk) and a short stack of pancakes (Ms. Birks), they discussed communication between the city and school district, civic engagement and establishing trust with members of the public.
Birks, who’s from Connecticut, was temporarily hired to run the district after the school board ousted former Superintendent John Stanford. The board’s expected to start the process for finding a permanent replacement for Stanford next month, after internal elections take place for the board president and vice president.
- Mayor Tuerk and acting Superintendent Birks got to know each other over breakfast Thursday in Allentown
- They agreed to work closely with each other and collaborate on communication
- Birks got advice from the mayor about building relationships within the community
Tuerk told Birks one of the mayor’s jobs is to have a close relationship with the superintendent.
“You will be able to count on me as an ally to help serve the kids of the district,” he said.
Birks said she is passionate about serving in school districts like Allentown because she once was a student in a similar school district and had great teachers.
“This community reminds me of Bridgeport and cities I’ve worked in previously,” she said.
“You will be able to count on me as an ally to help serve the kids of the district."Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk
Tuerk said he was disappointed that the board cut ties with Stanford, because of the need he sees to have stability in the leadership at the school district. The district has not publicly given a reason for Stanford’s departure. Its solicitor general said the separation agreement was mutually agreed to, and a statement released by the school district said there had been no professional misconduct or impropriety.
The mayor touched on one recent controversy during Stanford's tenure, and admitted to communication missteps after a student was arrested with a loaded semi-automatic handgun inside Allen High School in September. The police department and Stanford were criticized for withholding the information for nearly a week until Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin revealed the information.
Tuerk said the city and school district should be on the same page when issues like that occur.
“I think that’s one of those things where when we get into communication and how we collectively communicate as the city and the school district, I think there’s a huge opportunity there for us to borrow a phrase from a church: ‘Sing from the same hymn book,’” he said.
Birks said the two need to become a united front.
“It’s one community,” she said. “It’s going to be important for us to send out these messages.”
Tuerk added that the public struggles of the school district negatively impact the city’s economic development.
“So we, you and I, have this incredibly important job in the Lehigh Valley of kind of turning the ship around, giving the Lehigh Valley the confidence that the urban center of the region is on the right footing,” he said.
Birks said she wants to showcase the positive activities happening in Allentown's schools, and highlight the students and the staff. She also wants to build relationships with members of the community, and said she plans to go to hair salons, barbershops and churches to meet Allentown residents and get to know them.
Encouraging that idea, Tuerk also recommended dropping in at diners on the East Side and getting to know the area’s Syrian community.
“The East Side is a magical place in Allentown,” he said. “There’s a t-shirt that says ‘It’s an East Side thing,’ right?”
At the end of the breakfast, Birks was recognized and welcomed to the area by some of the Ham Fam diners. One woman, a retired teacher who said she taught special education for more than 40 years, wished her luck.
Birks is starting her community outreach efforts under challenging circumstances, as questions remain about the circumstances of Stanford's departure, and some stakeholders continue to call for answers.
To that end, area NAACP members say they’re planning to meet at 7th and Hamilton streets on Saturday to again protest the school board’s firing of Stanford.
The group held a similar demonstration in late October.