Chester CountyPRESS
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Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas Volume 149, No. 11
INSIDE
Teacher negotiations get an angry comment, and Unionville High School principal announces retirement By John Chambless Staff Writer
Lincoln University salutes a World War II hero..........................1B
Kennett organization celebrates its 100th meeting..................6B
Last Friday morning’s press conference at the UnionvilleChadds Ford School District office got some backlash from teachers at Monday evening’s meeting of the school board. The Friday press conference, during which members of the district’s negotiating team revealed the state of negotiations between the administration and teachers over a three-year contract, got a heated comment from Scott Broomall, the presi-
dent of the Unionville-Chadds Ford Education Association. Before Broomall spoke, board member Gregg Lindner announced that the teachers union is currently proposing a 5.01 percent increase in total compensation (salary plus benefits) each year over their next three-year contract, while the district is putting forward a 2.08 percent proposal each year over three years. The district’s guidelines, Lindner said, are arriving at a fair compensation and benefits package to keep recruiting top
John Eddie coming to the Kennett Flash.......3B
INDEX Calendar of Events..........3B Opinion..........................7A Obituaries.......................8A Police Blotter.................4B Classified.....................9B
Avon Grove School District officials now have the results of a recently completed district-wide facilities study to help them make some important decisions about the future. The 203-page facilities study, compiled by Gilbert Architects, Inc., evaluated the district’s existing buildings and also took a look at future needs. The document was presented to Avon Grove’s Facilities Committee on March 4. Avon Grove School Board president Brian Gaerity said that district officials will be able to take their time to carefully consider the various options to address the long-term facilities needs of the district. “This is just the start of the
before our contract expires, and more importantly, decided to do it at 10:30 a.m. on a school day. After the press conference concluded, there were messages on my cell phone, there was a call from the office, interrupting my class, asking if I could take a phone call. I appreciate that reporters reached out to get our side of the story, but I am teaching during the day. I fault the board, because if they had given more thought to when they were doing the press conference, and truly cared about Continued on Page 2A
Avon Grove School District Historic Enrollment 5,500 5,400 5,300 5,200 5,100 5,000
5,215
5,390
5,445
5,414
5,395
5,380
5,260
5,151
5,106
5,084
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
2008-09
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
Source: Avon Grove School District
process,” said Gaerity, “and I honestly don’t know how long the process will take. We don’t have a capacity crisis of any kind, but there are a number
of major issues that will need to be addressed sooner rather than later.” The district currently has four school buildings, two on an
elementary campus for grades K-6 and two on the secondary campus for grades 7-12. A major purpose of the study
New Garden Township Supervisor Betty Gordon submitted her letter of resignation at Monday night’s board meeting, specifying that she will end her six-year term on April 1, nine months before her term is set to officially expire on Jan. 1, 2016. “A supervisor’s term is six years, and this is the sixth year of my six-year term, and I’ve come to the realization that I’m reaching the age and stage where I need to consider moving into a retirement community,” Gordon told the audience. “It is with extreme regret that I must submit my resignation from the New Garden Board of Supervisors. I will be moving out of the township within the next few months, and will therefore no longer be able to serve, since I will no longer be a resident of New Garden Township. “It has been a pleasure to serve the residents, and I’m grateful to have had the oppor-
tunity. But now we look to the future.” Gordon’s premature departure from the board forces the township to hurriedly look for a successor to fill the vacancy on the five-person board for the remainder of the year. Township Solicitor Vince Pompo said that the board has 30 days from April 1 to approve a successor to Gordon, by motion, to appoint a successor who will serve through the end of the term. If for some reason the board can not agree on a successor within that 30-day period, there will be a period of 15 days for the Vacancy Board to choose a successor. If there is no successor appointed within that 45-day period, the township would have to appeal to the Chester County Court of Common Pleas, where a judge would rule to fill the vacancy. Gordon’s term on the board is not the only one that expires at the end of the year. The term of Patrick Little, who was appointed to fill the seat Continued on Page 5A
Search for missing Oxford girl continues By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer A 16-year-old Oxford Borough girl has been missing for more than a week, and the community is hoping for her safe return soon. Lauryn Thompson ran away from home on March 9. She was last seen in the area of Honey Brook and West Brandywine Township at approximately 4 a.m. on that morning. Lauryn is the daughter of an Oxford Borough Council member, John Thompson, and at Monday night’s borough council meeting, resident Peggy Ann Russell said that she is hopeful that the girl’s picture and story will be widely circulated so that she can be found. Lauryn is average height and weighs approximately 110 pounds. She has brown eyes and brown hair, but her hair may have red highlights or may be dyed red. She wears gauges in her ears with a bar Continued on Page 5A
Continued on Page 4A
Gordon to resign from New Garden board By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
© 2007 The Chester County Press
teachers, and making sure that the agreement doesn’t force consideration of program cuts or raising class sizes. “With an Act 1 limit on tax increases of 1.9 percent this year, we either need to limit these benefit expense increases, or limit wage increases,” he said. “We cannot afford both a wage increase and maintaining current benefits.” During public comment at the school board meeting, Broomall said, “I was surprised when the district went public with three and a half months
Avon Grove looks toward the future with district-wide facilities study By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer
A Kennett High School senior signs to play lacrosse for U.S. Military Academy.................2B
60 Cents
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Municipal police moving forward By Uncle Irvin
vice to the township, which spanned for five decades. Flanked by four of his former officers -- all of whom still serve the township -- Davis received recognition from current Police Chief Gerald Simpson. “He was the right man at the right time for this organization,” Simpson said. “We would not be where we are at today without his guidance.”
According to official spokesman Kennett Square Mayor Matt Fetick, the discussion about a regional police force in the Kennett area has added Avondale, West Grove Borough and East Marlborough Township to the mix of Kennett Square Borough, Kennett Township, New Garden Township and London Grove Township. All the municipalities have agreed to the concept and are now engaged in the budget process. Eventually, there will be a final document that the elected officials of each municipality would vote on. The impetus for regional police forces has been initiated by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, which has thrown the weight of state government into developing
Continued on Page 3A
Continued on Page 3A
Photo by Richard L. Gaw
Gerald W. Davis, long-time Chief of Police in New Garden Township, was honored on March 16 for his service.
Cpl. Joseph F. Greenwalt named officer of the year
Former police chief honored in New Garden ceremony By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer The man who built the bedrock foundation that now supports the modern-day New Garden Township Police Department received a standing ovation on Monday night. At award ceremonies held at the New Garden Township Building on March 16, longtime former Police Chief Gerald Davis was honored for his ser-
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