Gazette The Centre County
www.CentreCountyGazette.com
Family Matters
This week’s special section focuses on all things family. From finding the right tutor for your child to dealing with a picky eater, there are plenty of helpful tips./Pages 15-18
March 12-18, 2015
Volume 7, Issue 10
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Board members won’t seek re-election By MICHAEL MARTIN GARRETT StateCollege.com
STATE COLLEGE — Three longtime members of the State College Area school board are stepping down later this year, fulfilling a promise they made to the community when they were first elected. Dorthea Stahl, Jim Pawelczyk and Ann McGlaughlin each plan to step down from the board after their current terms end in December. “When I originally ran for the board in 2007, part of the community’s disenfranchisement was that they felt members
stayed on too long,” Stahl said. “The idea was that even if you don’t have term limits, you shouldn’t stay on so long that you don’t allow for new people and new ideas.” Stahl said serving her second term has been rewarding, but she never planned to run for a third. She said that if she ran for a third term, she would feel as if she were ignoring one of the main reasons she ran for the board in the first place. McGlaughlin agreed, calling her decision not to run for a third term “the fulfillment of a promise that I made to myself and my family.” Pawelczyk actually didn’t run for the
school board in 2007, but was appointed to the board after a member was unexpectedly forced to relocate for work. Pawelczyk, along with Stahl and McGlaughlin, joined the board in the aftermath of the failed 2007 plan to renovate the high school. He said transparency and good process have been key to his tenure because the first high school project lacked both, prompting strong reactions from the community. “There were sentiments that the design of the building was being forced upon them, there were others who didn’t want their taxes to go up, and there were some
who felt the design wasn’t the best for education,” Pawelczyk said. “But all these different reasons came together in one extremely large opposition group that made up the majority of the community.” Stahl said the opposition that came out of the 2007 high school project drove notably high turnout at the school board elections to “turn over the board” — but only seven years later, the community voted in support of a new high school project. Approved by public referendum in May, the $115 million high school project Board, Page 4
Zimmerman hopes passion leads to museum By CHRIS MORELLI editor@centrecountygazette.com
PORT MATILDA — For Clarence Zimmerman, being a police officer was more than a profession — it was his passion. Zimmerman, 76, has long since retired from the police force. Throughout his career, he saved nearly every police-related item that he had in his possession. From his badge to his handbook, he kept it. And not only did he keep those items, he kept them in pristine condition. Late in his career, he began collecting other pieces of police memorabilia. To say it became a hobby would be an understatement. “I don’t have any more shelves,” Zimmerman said with a laugh. “I don’t have any more space.” Zimmerman has thousands of police-related items in the basement of his Port Matilda home. Now, he’s hoping to share them
CENTRE COUNTY SPOTLIGHT with Centre County — and beyond. Zimmerman has designs on opening an International Police Museum somewhere in the county. For now, his basement is the museum. There are badges, books, model cars, patches and action figures. There’s even an old set of handcuffs or two among the treasures. But the most impressive items in Zimmerman’s vast collection are, without a doubt, the police uniforms. The police forces represented span the globe. Sure, he’s got a Pennsylvania State Police uniform. But there also are uniforms from Iraq and Italy, just to name a few. The Canadian Mounted Police uniform and one from San Quentin certainly stand out. Zimmerman, Page 4
CHRIS MORELLI/The Gazette
TO PROTECT AND SERVE: Retired police officer Clarence Zimmerman, of Port Matilda, has a vast collection of police items, including scale models and uniforms. He’s looking for space in Centre County to start a museum.
Hanger talks state budget By CHRIS MORELLI
Judge denies request to remove DA from rape case By MICHAEL MARTIN GARRETT
editor@centrecountygazette.com
CHRIS MORELLI/The Gazette
MONEY TALKS: Pennsylvania Secretary of Policy and Planning John Hanger, spoke about Gov. Tom Wolf’s budget during a breakfast held by the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County. Opinion ................................. 7 Health & Wellness ................. 8
Spring Home Improvement .9 Education ............................ 10
StateCollege.com
STATE COLLEGE — Pennsylvania Secretary of Policy and Planning John Hanger was in Centre County on Tuesday, March 10, to talk about Gov. Tom Wolf’s budget and how it will impact the region during a breakfast held by the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County. Wolf recently released his proposed budget for the commonwealth. One of the first items that Hanger touched on was the change in direction from the previous administration. “The governor has proposed a bold budget plan,” Hanger said. “I think the question is: ‘Why now? Why a bold budget plan?’ I believe the answer to
BELLEFONTE — Allegations of bias and misconduct on the part of Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller have not convinced a judge to remove her from a felony rape and trespassing case. In court documents filed yesterday, defense attorney Sean McGraw accused Parks Miller of creating “a grave appearance of bias” by exchanging hundreds of text messages with Centre County
Hanger, Page 6
DA, Page 5
Community ................... 11-14 Family Matters .............. 15-18
Sports ............................. 19-23 Home Show ................... 24, 25
Arts & Entertainment ......... 26 What’s Happening ........ 26, 27
STACY PARKS MILLER
Puzzles ................................. 28 Business ......................... 29, 30