William Francis Benson 
September 1, 1996 
William Francis Benson, 78, Of Hill Street, Mocanaqua, Died Sunday At The 
Wilkes-barre General Hospital.

Agnes Snyder 
August 29, 1996 
Agnes M. Snyder, 96, Of The Dan Flood Apartments, East Main Street, Plymouth, 
Died Thursday In The Birchwood Nursing Center, Nanticoke.

By JENNIFER LEARN; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Sunday, September 01, 1996 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 19 





HAZLETON -- Another applicant for the law enforcement teaching position in
Hazleton Area School District has come forward with complaints about the
hiring process. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Hazleton Police Patrolman James R. Joseph said last week that he applied
for the job but never got an interview. Joseph, a city resident, has 20 years
of experience in law enforcement, including nine years as city police chief. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Another applicant, retired state police trooper Richard F. McGettigan, of
Hazle Township, recently complained that he submitted a resume but never got a
response from the district. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Vince Zola, the only other applicant, was hired for the position Aug. 7,
about five hours after the applications were due. Zola, the brother of
District Justice Joseph Zola, worked as a city police officer with majority
school board member Tom Marnell in the early 1980s. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Joseph said he joins McGettigan in challenging how the district knows that
it hired the best applicant if the other two applicants were not interviewed. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The men also wonder why the district was in such a hurry to hire someone
when the law enforcement course won't be offered until January. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Applications were due at 2 p.m. Aug. 7, and Zola was hired at a board
meeting that night. At the time, district officials said they had to hire
someone quickly to organize the curriculum. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Joseph said he heard months ago that the teaching position was going to be
created, and he visited district Superintendent Geraldine Shepperson in April
to say he was interested. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Shepperson, according to Joseph, said she had no information about the
position, and Joseph asked her to notify him if a position opened. Joseph said
Shepperson never called, and he learned about the opening in an Aug. 4
newspaper article. The position was never advertised in the classified section
of a newspaper. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "With all the other responsibilities she has as superintendent, I suppose
it slipped her mind," Joseph said sarcastically. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Joseph said he submitted his resume for the job on Monday, Aug. 5.
Shepperson called Joseph's home at 1:15 p.m. the next day asking Joseph to
appear for an interview at 2:15 p.m., he said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Joseph said he had a prior commitment that he could not cancel on such
short notice. He asked Shepperson if he could appear for an interview anytime
later that afternoon or the next day. Joseph said Shepperson promised to call
him back to schedule another time. "I'm still waiting for a return call,"
Joseph said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 McGettigan said he submitted his resume on Aug. 6 but was never contacted
by the district for an interview. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Like McGettigan, Joseph said he is not criticizing Zola personally, just
the way the job was filled. Joseph said he has worked with Zola and McGettigan
through his job on the city police force. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Vince is very aggressive, and I'm sure he'll do a good job. However, I
also know the other applicant, who helped me out considerably when I was
police chief, and he would have made an excellent choice for the position had
he been afforded the opportunity," Joseph said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Joseph, 42, has 20 years of experience in law enforcement and worked as
Hazleton police chief from 1987 until a change in the city administration
earlier this year. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Joseph has a bachelor's degree in political science from York College,
York, and is working towards a master's degree. Joseph has also completed law
enforcement training at the FBI National Academy, Quantico, Va.; the State
Police Training Academy; the National Rifle Association Training School and
Penn State University. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 McGettigan has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from King's College
in Wilkes-Barre and worked in the state police for 31 years in several
barracks, mostly Troop N in West Hazleton. McGettigan worked his way through
the ranks of the state police and was eventually promoted to crime section
commander at Troop N, supervising all criminal investigations within a
four-county area. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The posting for the instructor position said the applicant needed 10 years
of experience in law enforcement and administrative and school security
experience. The applicant also needed to have passed a state test that is
required to get certified to teach the course. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Both Joseph and McGettigan said they are ready and willing to take the test
and to take teaching courses at Temple University, as Zola is. Zola has
started completing the 60 college credits in teaching needed so he can get
permanent teaching certification. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The 12-month law enforcement instructor position requires half a day of
teaching and half a day working as security director. District officials say
the job is expected to pay about $29,000 annually. The full-time security
director job held by Zola was eliminated. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The district refused to release Zola's application, saying job applications
contain confidential personnel information. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Shepperson did not return a call for comment on Joseph's application for
the position. Zola has also not returned calls. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

2nd Hiring Complaint Applicant Says He Never Got Interview