By Mary Wolters, Staff Reporter
Democrats swept the TESD school board elections on Nov. 7, maintaining the party’s 9-0 majority. Democrats Roberta Hotinski, Todd Kantorczyk, Kenneth Hong, Rachel Weil and Sue Tiede will serve on the board for the next four years. They ran against Republicans Regina Mauro, Yan Lui, Bogdan Rosca, Deana Wang and Christina Laczko, respectively.
While campaigning, the Democratic candidates generally emphasized matters such as the construction of new Conestoga sports fields, the emergence of generative artificial intelligence in school curricula and overcrowding of the district’s elementary schools.
The Republican candidates ran under the joint campaign “Diversify our T/E Board.” They highlighted concerns such as the recent decline in the district’s math and reading scores, insufficient support for students with special needs and a perceived lack of financial transparency from the school district.
Hong, who represents Region 2, is the co-director of Make Us Visible PA, the Pennsylvania chapter of the national nonprofit organization Make Us Visible. He has previously worked with students, parents and legislators to incorporate more Asian American and Pacific Islander representation in school curricula.
“Running for school board was a way for me to give back to the wonderful T/E community and a natural next step from advocating for my kids’ individual educational needs and the Asian Pacific American community to advocating for all our students and families in the school district,” Hong wrote in an email.
Tiede, one of the reelected school board members, will continue representing Region 3. She first joined the school board in 2019 and has experience working in public education from her time as the principal of Devon Elementary School from 2000-2007.
“During the next four years I want to continue working with my fellow board members to ensure we have the staff and facilities to fully deliver our educational program,” Tiede wrote in an email. “I want to do all I can to ensure that this generation of students has the same excellent education as my sons experienced.”
The new school board members were officially inducted into office at the annual reorganization meeting on Dec. 4. At that meeting, the board members elected the board’s president and vice president.
“I am excited to begin working with a school board that represents a wide diversity of backgrounds and professional experiences,” Hong wrote. “I look forward to working with all members of our community toward our common goal of helping all of our children, regardless of their circumstances, receive the high quality education they deserve.”
Mary Wolters can be reached at [email protected].
