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Four seek Mechanicsburg School Board seats

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By Matt Sanctis, Staff Writer 5:31 PM Monday, October 26, 2009

MECHANICSBURG — This November’s election will include one incumbent and three first-time candidates in a race for three available seats on Mechanicsburg’s school board.

The incumbent in the race is Dan Gaver, who is finishing his first term on the board. Scott DeLong, a candidate who touts his financial background, works as the chief financial officer for Champaign Residential Services. Brian Forrest, a sales representative for Kalmbach Feeds, Inc., said he became interested in the race because he has children in the schools, and wanted to help serve students and families throughout the district.

Tony Mascadri, a project leader at Honda Research and Development Americas, argued his problem-solving skills would serve the district well.

Each candidate said the district’s budget will be the main issue they will face during their time on the board, if elected.

DeLong said his financial background will help the district in that capacity. He noted that will be important since two board members have decided not to seek re-election.

“With my background, I think I can replace that need,” DeLong said.

If elected, Forrest said he would be straightforward with community members about the issues the district faces. One of his strengths, he said, is working with others to help make difficult decisions.

“I’ve got high expectations for my kids and all the kids in the district and I think there are some things I can offer to help make that happen,” he said.

Mascadri said his engineering background has taught him how to carefully analyze a problem without jumping to quick conclusions.

“I’m pretty good at analyzing problems and coming up with a good solution for the majority of people,” he said.

Gaver said while he was on the board, the district did a good job of staying within the budget while building a new school. He also said the board hired well, which eventually led to the district receiving an excellent rating on its recent report card.

“But with that being said, we need to continue the search for the best people that we can afford while providing the best education possible,” he said.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0355 or msanctis@coxohio.com.

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