Incumbents Keep Parkway School Board Seats

UPDATED 12:50 p.m., Wed., April 3-

Voters decided Tuesday that incumbent Parkway School Board members Sam Sciortino and Tom Appelbaum should keep their positions. Voters selected two of the eight candidates running for the open seats in the Parkway School Board election.

Board members serve three-year terms.

Sciortino received the most votes, with 5,049 votes, or 21.26 percent. Appelbaum garnered 3,596 votes, or 15.14 percent. School board candidate Jenifer Clifton wasn't far behind with 3,338 votes, or 14.05 percent, but there were only two open seats.

Patch reached out to both re-elected school board members Tuesday night, but it was after 10 p.m. when election results came in.

Patch was able to reach Appelbaum who was watching the numbers. He said he was not surprised by the tight race.

"I figured it would be pretty close," Appelbaum said. "It's really hard to predict how these things are going to go. They can go in any direction."

He said he believes he and Sciortino will be sworn in during an April 15 meeting which should give the election results time to be certified.

This will be Appelbaum's second term on the board and he said in the next three years he hopes to see the district continue making improvements similar to recent accomplishments, such as getting the district's "fiscal house" in order and reestablishing the the fund balance.

"Stay on the track of improvement that we've been on. We've made some really good improvements here lately and I want to make sure we keep getting input from the stakeholders and make sure we don't go off course," Appelbaum said.

Sciortino issued the following statement in an email to Patch Wednesday.

Continuing to serve as a Director of the Parkway Board of Education is an honor for me.  Parkway provides our students  with outstanding educational opportunities to  grow successfully in being capable, curious, and confident.  My ongoing commitment is to work in collaboration with the Board, School Personnel, and the Parkway community to continue on the path of insuring  educational excellence for each of our students. 

My sincere “thank you” to the patrons of Parkway for their trust and confidence in me to continue serving as a Director.

To learn more about the school board candidates, read their profiles below.

• Sam Sciortino
• Jenifer Clifton
• Tom Appelbaum
• Daniel P. Brodsky
• Brad Williams
• Debbie Hopper
• Ken Eigenberg
• Diane Finnestead

READ RELATED ELECTION STORIES:

Parkway Candidates Explain What They Would Do If Elected

Gun Shy: Little Support for Armed Teachers Among Parkway Candidates

Profiles Provide Basics on Parkway's School Board Candidates