- The Saucon Valley School Board race features two opposing slates running aggressive campaigns
- The incumbents, running on the Republican ticket, highlight their ability to manage finances while maintaining a high-performing district
- The Democratic challengers argue the board is picking needless fights that will cost taxpayers
LOWER SAUCON TWP, Pa. — Months of political tangling over the goings-on at Saucon Valley School District will come to a head Tuesday when voters select five candidates to serve four-year terms on the school board.
While the race hasn't featured the culture war topics that have dominated contests in districts such as Southern Lehigh or Parkland, the candidates have run aggressive campaigns criticizing their opponents and their visions for Saucon Valley.
The Republican ticket features five incumbents — Susan Baxter, Bryan Eichfeld, Laurel Ericksons-Parsons, Michael Karabin and Shawn Welch.
Baxter and Karabin have served for more than 20 years, while Eichfeld is seeking a fourth term. Their record is one that's delivered for taxpayers, they said.
"I feel we work very well together. We're well managed and we've been very affordable to the community."Saucon Valley School Board President Susan Baxter
Local school taxes have gone up just three times in the past 12 years, and the district has a well-earned reputation for academic excellence, they said.
Under their watch, the district maintained in-person classes during the coronavirus pandemic, which they said limited the learning loss other districts have experienced.
"I feel we work very well together. We're well managed and we've been very affordable to the community," board President Baxter said.
Opposing slate, opposing views
The opposing slate — Democrats Bill Broun, Donald Carpenter, Vivian Demko and Jay Santos — counter the board has been penny wise and pound foolish.
The headstrong board has bumbled into easily avoidable lawsuits, and morale among teachers is in the gutter, they said.
A change in leadership would boost performance at the district and protect residents from needless expenses, the challengers said.
"I think there is a lot of self-congratulation about holding the line on spending, but it's led to a situation where kids aren't getting their yearbooks and we're paying $9.99 an hour for paraprofessionals."Saucon Valley School Board candidate Bill Broun
"I think there is a lot of self-congratulation about holding the line on spending, but it's led to a situation where kids aren't getting their yearbooks and we're paying $9.99 an hour for paraprofessionals," said Broun, an English professor at East Stroudsburg University.
The Democratic candidates have pointed to the high-profile clash with the ACLU last spring as the epitome of their case.
District policy required the board to allow an After School Satan Club to use school property, but the board withdrew permission before its first meeting.
Board members insisted they revoked access because the club failed to follow district rules, but the ACLU sued, alleging the club's First Amendment rights were trampled.
A federal judge ruled in May that the district must accommodate the club in the short-term because it appeared to have violated the club's rights. The lawsuit continues, though a negotiated deal appears close.
'Process all school districts go through'
While the Satan Club grabbed headlines, the district has faced multiple lawsuits about its special education offerings.
A Right-To-Know request filed by the Democratic ticket revealed the district has picked up $1.6 million in legal fees since 2016, with $1.4 million of that total from 2019 to March of this year.
Most of these cases could have been avoided by respecting the law and providing mandated services, the challengers said.
"We want to fix the charter that has been in place for over 30 years and make it fair. Everything will come together."School Board Director Bryan Eichfeld on negotiations over the Bethlehem Area Vocational Technical School
The repeated lost lawsuits over special education show the district isn't living up to mandated education standards, said Demko, a retired teacher who previously led the district's teachers union.
Fiscal responsibility is one thing, but failing to provide core educational services to some taxpayers is another, she said.
"It’s not acceptable to me," she said. "Taxes haven’t gone up, but the entire feel of the school has gone down significantly."
Each of the incumbents who granted interviews for this report waved off the attack. The legal fees have been absorbed by the district's insurance and haven't cost taxpayers.
All local governments find themselves enmeshed in lawsuits at one point or another, and Saucon Valley is no exception, they said.
"It's more of a standard process that all school districts go through," said Karabin, who has served 20 years on the board over two stints. "I feel we're relatively lucky in keeping legal fee costs somewhat in check."
Decision awaits over vo-tech contract
One of the biggest debates in the district is over ongoing negotiations over the Bethlehem Area Vocational Technical School, or BAVTS.
The school serves Saucon Valley students as well as students in Bethlehem Area and Northampton Area school districts. While operating costs are divided among the districts for each student, the infrastructure costs are split by the assessed property values in each district.
"There’s a way to do that without wrecking everything. It’s not really a coincidence that for every organization they have to engage in negotiations with, things apparently go terribly wrong."Saucon Valley School Board candidate Donald Carpenter
That's created a stir as BAVTS is looking to expand. Some 200 students were turned away from BAVTS this year because of a lack of space, Eichfeld said, though there's little demand coming from Saucon Valley.
Incumbent board members have taken to the negotiating table, saying their taxpayers shouldn't be on the hook so more out-of-district students can get their education.
"We want to fix the charter that has been in place for over 30 years and make it fair," said Eichfeld, a salesman. "Everything will come together."
The challengers are less confident. They've pointed to the hostile negotiations the board has conducted in recent years.
The board was poised to sign a sports medicine contract with St. Luke's University Health Network this summer, but it was pulled at the last minute.
Instead, the board inked a similar deal with the Lehigh Valley Health Network, sparking a heated response from St. Luke's.
Negotiation tactics questioned
Carpenter, who is a union president in addition to working as a senior research technician with ExxonMobil, said the board's negotiation tactics result in burned bridges.
There's nothing wrong with standing up for the district or demanding better for taxpayers, but the district's representatives need to remember they're hashing out a deal with their neighbors at the end of the day, he said.
"We've had legacy teachers who have worked in that district for 20 years who now leave because of that leadership."Saucon Valley School Board candidate Jay Santos
If the leaders tries to drive too hard a bargain, it could leave the district's vo-tech students in the lurch if the other districts move on, he said.
"There’s a way to do that without wrecking everything," Carpenter said. "It’s not really a coincidence that for every organization they have to engage in negotiations with, things apparently go terribly wrong."
The relations with the teachers union is little better, the Democrats said.
The current administration has alienated teachers by shifting them between buildings and not engaging with them on changes to the curriculum, they said.
It's resulted in burnout and animosity that could be easily avoided by treating it as a partnership instead of leading without seeking input, they said.
"We've had legacy teachers who have worked in that district for 20 years who now leave because of that leadership," said Santos, a solutions engineer.
Controlling costs
Welch, a retired Army colonel who served as deputy director of infrastructure out of the Pentagon, noted the teachers union has endorsed his opponents, which he viewed as a conflict of interest.
While the board isn't looking to pick fights with the union, the relationship is naturally adversarial as the union tries to extract the best deal for its members and the board tries to protect taxpayers, Welch said.
The district, he said, has managed to control costs by negotiating fair deals. He questioned how his opponents would do that considering who their backers are.
"They are some of the best-paid teachers in the Valley. A lot of our citizens do not have medical [insurance] remotely comparable to theirs."Saucon Valley School Board Member Shawn Welch
"They are some of the best-paid teachers in the Valley," Welch said. "A lot of our citizens do not have medical [insurance] remotely comparable to theirs."
Erickson-Parsons, a pediatrician with St. Luke's University Health Network, was appointed to the board in August 2022. She did not respond to interview requests for this report ahead of either the primary or general election.
She is the only candidate to win nominations as both a Republican and Democrat in this race, but she is campaigning with her fellow incumbents.
