W-b Wants To Have Ball And Drop It Too

Apology Can't Stop 2- To 4-year Sentence 
Convicted Of Involuntary 
Manslaughter, Barry Dillow, 26, 
Of Newport Township, Said He Was 
Sorry For Shooting Glenn Morgis 
To Death During A Fight

By MIKE RUBINKAM; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Wednesday, June 19, 1996 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1A 





WILKES-BARRE -- The Wilkes-Barre Area School Board proved an old adage true
Tuesday afternoon: In trying to please everybody, you usually wind up pleasing
nobody. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The board compromised with parents of Bear Creek Elementary School students
by voting to keep the building open. The catch: fifth- and sixth-graders will
be sent to a new school under construction in Plains Township. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The move will free up space at Bear Creek, which is already filled to
capacity and needs extensive repairs. The board had considered closing the
building altogether, causing intense opposition among many parents afraid to
send their children down state Route 115. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The vote was 7-1. John Yencha voted no, and Michael Rushton was absent. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Also Tuesday, the board, responding to pressures brought by Plains Township
residents and officials, voted unanimously to attach "Plains Memorial" to the
name of the new school. The new name is the Leo Solomon Educational Complex
Plains Memorial. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The move involving Bear Creek will free up space at that school, which is
already filled to capacity and needs extensive repairs. The board had
considered closing the building altogether, causing intense opposition among
many parents afraid to send their children down state Route 115. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The vote was 7-1. John Yencha voted no, and Michael Rushton was absent. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Both votes were intended to placate Bear Creek parents and Plains Township
taxpayers, both of whom packed the meeting room at the administration
building. But neither group was satisfied. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Bear Creek parents in particular were incensed that the board voted
before they had a chance to speak. The parents had been meeting for several
weeks to plot strategy and fine-tune Tuesday's presentations. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "The fact that they took the vote before we spoke just totally blew us out
of the water," said Denise Rogan of Bear Creek Township, who has three
children at the school. "We are appalled at how this meeting was conducted." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But board members defended their decision, saying they had already met with
the parents and heard the arguments. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I listened. I was ready to vote to close, but I changed my mind," said
Owen Costello. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In part, the decision to keep Bear Creek open was based on a report
completed last week by the district's maintenance and custodial departments.
The report concluded that moving the fifth- and sixth-grades would ease
overcrowding at the school, which already has two modular classrooms attached
to it. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The report also listed the repairs needed at the school, which include a
new roof, an improved electrical system and new windows. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Plains Township contingent, though much smaller than Bear Creek's, was
every bit as vocal. In particular, 74-year-old Maggie Antinovitch berated
board members for what she claimed was unfair treatment of Plains Township
residents. She suggested that the new school, which is supposed to open in
September 1997, be named "Plains Memorial Educational Complex." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "When you build a school in Wilkes-Barre, then you can call it Leo
Solomon," she said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In other business, the board voted to hire the wife of new School Board
member Jim Atherton as an elementary school teacher effective Aug. 29. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Superintendent Jeff Namey said Nancy Wolsieffer Atherton would have been
hired despite her relationship with a board member. Atherton has been a
substitute teacher at Wilkes-Barre Area for six years and an educator for 16. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "She was in line to get the job," said Namey, "and that's an absolute
fact." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Atherton, who abstained from the vote, met his wife a year ago and got
married in February. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Whether I married her or not, she was going to get the job," he said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 TIMES LEADER/RICHARD SABATURA &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Parents of Bear Creek Elementary School students applaud Tuesday as a
speaker berates the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board for its decision to send
fifth- and sixth-graders to a new school in Plains Township. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

W-b Area To Keep School In Service In A Second Decision, The Board Compromises On The Name Of New Plains Township Elementary Building