This letter to the editor was submitted to LebTown. Read our submission policy here.
As the president of the Palmyra Area School District board of directors, I feel obligated to respond to the letter to the editor titled, We All Deserve Answers, written by school board director Jill Martin. The letter was regarding a hit-and-run crash that happened in Palmyra on Jan. 7, 2025, in which one of the drivers fled the scene of the crash on foot and entered a district building after regular hours. Only some of her letter is factually correct. In her letter, she states she contacted me “last Friday” and has not received further information. While somewhat true, it is misleading. The fact is that she emailed me on Friday, Feb. 7, at 8:41 p.m. I emailed her back at 8:21 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 8 (less than 12 hours later), stating that I would investigate the matter. Her letter to the editor was published on Feb. 9. Draw your own conclusions.
Read More: [Letter] “We all deserve answers,” says PASD director of hit-and-run suspect
I was familiar with the incident because immediately following the crash, PASD superintendent Dr. Bernie Kepler sent a message to every parent in the district informing them of the situation, including that one of the individuals involved had fled and was seen near the Pine St. elementary school. Dr. Kepler said he worked closely with local law enforcement and our school police officers. He added that they were conducting searches of our buildings because many after-school activities took place that day. At this time, it was not known that the individual had entered one of our buildings. This was discovered much later after an exhaustive search through hours of school security camera video footage. That footage was being used to investigate, identify, and apprehend the suspect. While it may have been appropriate to inform the school board of this development, it is certainly common not to comment on active police investigations.
I can assure our community that every effort is always made to ensure our children and staff’s safety and security. One of the most difficult problems we face is the security of buildings and grounds after hours. This includes after-school activities and athletic events. There is simply no way to prevent every possibility. Football games, theatre events, and swim meets are open to the public. Even if we treat the school as a prison with guards at the doors, no one would have known this person was on the lam, and he likely would have been admitted. Moving forward, however, we will continue exploring ways to mitigate similar instances in the future.
I commend Dr. Kepler, our school police officers, and our local police for their swift and thorough attention to this incident. Without a doubt, the safety of our kids and our community was at the forefront of their immediate actions. Additionally, I firmly believe that grandstanding and fear-mongering have no place in our school district or on our school board. Shame on anyone who would suggest or imply that the administration and perhaps even school board members would intentionally and purposefully withhold important information and not care about the safety of our children.
Regards,
Michael Koval
