Bensalem Township School Board Changing Majority

BENSALEM TOWNSHIP, PA — It will be a changing of the guard. And a changing of the board.

The 5-4 Republican majority on the Bensalem Township School Board will end with a Dec. 1 reorganization meeting of its school directors.

The meeting will the switch of the school board majority to an 8-1 Democratic majority as longtime School Director Marc Cohen, who lost his re-election bid in the November general election, exits.

The election saw a Democratic sweep in the school board races as former School Director Rachel Fingles was among the winners. She will be joined by newcomers Kate Pascucci, Leann Hart, and Rodger Allen.

The school board race has focused on debate over a new middle school. The school board recently held off a vote to allow the new school board to make that decision.

Several Democratic school board members had told Patch they were furious that the Republican 5-4 school board majority voted against rehabilitating the current middle school and building a new one, basically wiping out any options before Election Day.

The school board unanimously approved moving all 6th-grade students to an expanded middle school. (The township currently operates the Robert K. Shafer and Cecelia Snyder middle schools.)

School Director Karen Winters believes that with the 8-1 Democratic majority, the school board can return to the middle school discussion.

"I do think we can pick it up again," Winters said. "It may work out just fine anyway."