Kathyrn Buckley is running for school director in the Rose Tree Media School District, located in Delaware County. She is a registered Republican and currently works as a civil engineer in heavy highway construction.

Why are you running for school board?

I am running for school board to address a number of deficiencies within our current board.  Academics and test scores have decreased under the current board, and yet costs have gone up significantly. This board continues to ignore laws and forces their own opinions on the district. For example, they purchased a property to build a school knowing it did not have the proper zoning and vilified every tax payer in Edgmont who opposed changing their zoning laws. The current directors never visited the 32 proposed sites, rather they bought the property during covid before notifying the local tax payers and then sued the tax payers and township to force a zoning change.  This action resulted in an estimated $5 million in legal fees, only to lose. Additionally, our current board wanted to mandate the covid vaccine through the use of vaccine passports despite the fact that they cannot administer over the counter medication without parental permission. They also mandated masks when N95 masks have a statement that they should not be used to stop the transmission of viruses and bacteria.  As a construction professional, I am very familiar with OSHA standards, and the N95 masks did not meet the requisite standards.

What are the most important issues facing your district?

In addition to what I stated above, academic failure and tax increases are the most important issues facing our district.

What is your professional background/experience?  What skills would you bring to the board?

I have been a part of a family business since I was able to drive to work, and I know what is needed in order to be successful. You need a good product, completed within budget, and on a tight time schedule. The product of the board is providing a great education, within budget from kindergarten to high school graduation. Each year you are expected to have the average student achieve a certain educational goal. If they are not meeting the goals, you must modify them to achieve the goals.

As an engineer, I bring advanced math skills to the board. I know what skills students need to be successful in the real business world, including life skills and knowing the difference between a budget and an actual budget.

Have you run for political office previously?  Have you been politically active?

No, I haven’t run for office previously; however, I felt that our school district needed a change. I was never politically active until two years ago, so I am running to give voters a better choice.

Are you running with other candidates?

Yes, there are five of us running for school director under the group Make the Right Things Happen.  All of us have complementary and diverse skills, and each member in our group would be a great asset to the school board. Dean Dreibelbis has exceptional IT skills; Pat Bleasdale has a PhD in English and extensive business skills; Lorie has over ten years experience as a science teacher; and Mike Radcliffe is a businessman, as well as a very involved coaching father.

What is the most important role of the school board in your opinion?

The most important role of the school board is to educate the future generation with the skills to be successful in life, regardless of the path chosen, within budget, and within the time frame allotted.

We contacted the Democratic and Republican committees in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Lancaster, Lehigh, and Montgomery counties and asked them to share the questions with their school director candidates. Broad + Liberty will post the responses throughout the summer to assist voters in learning about the candidates running in their district. The series is open to any school director on the ballot in November. Please contact barosica@broadandliberty.com for more information.

Broad + Liberty is a nonprofit media endeavor dedicated to sharing voices and stories that are shut out of other media outlets. @BroadAndLiberty