Palmyra school board adds four new members to fill vacancies

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The five remaining members of the Palmyra Area School District board on Aug. 6 accepted and then filled four board vacancies.

While there were three positions to be filled as posted on the meeting agenda, the acceptance of the resignation of board vice president – and acting president – Corey Andrew was added to the list of the other resignations at the start of the meeting. 

The board acted to accept the resignations of board president Jill Martin, Alicia Haldeman, and Cynthia Spondello, who submitted resignations in mid-June, and Andrew, who submitted his resignation within 24 hours of the start of the Aug. 6 meeting. 

District business manager Mike Frentz said following the meeting that Andrew’s resignation had been received after the meeting agenda had been posted to the district’s website.

Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Law requires public meeting agendas to be published at least 24 hours before a meeting is held, so board members added that resignation to the agenda before filling the four open seats. Officials currently have wide latitude to amend agendas during a meeting.

The reason for Andrew’s resignation was not stated publicly. Some meeting attendees applauded after the resignations were accepted by the board. 

The resignations followed a public exchange of letters in June where directors Larry Geib, Christine Fisher, Sue Gilligan, and Dave Laudermilch called for Andrew’s resignation and Martin responded, calling the letter “childish gamesmanship.”

Thirteen of the 29 individuals who submitted resumes for the board spoke at the meeting, including the four who were elected to seats through Dec. 1, 2027. 

According to the agenda, applicants included Amanda Beaner, Ashely Cowles, Beck Moore, Bray Brunkhurst, Christian Wardle, Core Dupree, Dr. David Lillenstein, Gary Swanson, Gregory Daily, James Kreiser, Jenna Bonner, Jeremy Englehart, Jerrick Ventress, Jessie Maldonado, Josh Jones, Joshua Brinser, Kenn Medina, Mandy Harshberger, Matthew Getz, Meagan Stover, Michael Flasher, Mike Hollen, Mike Koval, Ralph Duquette, Richard Kovalik, Robert Tyler Whipple, Todd Miller, Troy Murphey, and William (Bill) Kenes.

Joshua Brinser, a schoolteacher in the Annville-Cleona School District, was elected by a 5-0 vote to replace Haldeman. Josh Jones, who was later named board president, was elected 4-1 to replace Martin, with board member Seth Steinmetz voting no.

Former board member Mike Koval, who retired from the Pennsylvania State Police, was elected unanimously and replaced Spondello. Dr. David Lillenstein, a school psychologist in the Derry Township School District, won Andrew’s former seat by a 3-2 vote. Steinmetz and Gilligan voted against his appointment. 

Fisher was elected vice president, Geib as treasurer, and Lillenstein as the board representative to Intermediate Unit 13. Steinmetz and Brinser were also named as representatives to the Palmyra Area Recreation & Parks Commission.

In other business, the board voted – following a 25-minute executive session – to include on the Aug. 20 meeting agenda the hiring of boy’s varsity wrestling coaches. One of several recent controversies in the school district was the non-renewal of contracts for wrestling coach Jonathan Regets and assistant wrestling coach Josh Weidman in May.

Varsity wrestling coaching vacancies

At the May 14 board meeting, Martin, Andrew, Haldeman, Spondello, and Steinmetz voted to approve the list of 2026-27 winter coaches without Regets and Weidman being named on it. That followed the coaches’ earlier suspension and subsequent reinstatement prior to both being informed they would not be offered new contracts. Regets previously told LebTown that the suspension came immediately after disciplining a wrestler at a December match. Neither the board nor the coaches identified the wrestler at the time, but speakers during public comment mentioned one of Andrew’s sons by name.

Community members — including wrestlers and parents — attended the May 14 meeting, as well as the May 28 and June 11 sessions, to request reinstatement of the coaches.

The coaching dilemma was one of several issues facing the school board over the first half of the year.

Other board business

In other business, the board voted to: 

• Retroactively approve 2026 summer hiring moves for the period of June 26 through Aug. 5. These hirings were authorized by the superintendent to offer employment opportunities for qualified vacancies in support and professional services for the 2026-27 school year. The agenda item was not previously acted on since the board cancelled its July meeting due to a lack of a quorum. 
• Approve a change order with eciConstruction LLC in a credit amount of $16,700 for the Buck Swank Stadium project. It was announced that stadium construction will be completed in time for the first home game of the 2026 football season. 
• Agree to purchase Pollution Insurance coverage with UCPM at a cost of $7,320, effective July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027.

The next board meeting is Thursday, Aug. 20, at 6 p.m. at Lingle Avenue Elementary School, 600 South Lingle Ave., Palmyra.

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