Belmont Hills Elementary School Hit Hard by Retirements

In a continuing trend, the accepted several staff retirements Wednesday night.

However, the number of names, 17, was higher than usual and included seven teachers from Belmont Hills Elementary School with more than 250 years of district experience.

The board also accepted the retirement of Karen Klingerman, the district's supervisor of professional development, who began working in the district in 1974.

Superintendent Bill Gretzula previously said the district expects 35-45 teacher retirements this year. Robert Cardillo, director of human resources for the district, has said the district normally sees 20-25 teacher retirements each year and is expecting more this year in part because of the rising cost of health care amid a recession.

The positive side of the retirements, district officials have said, is that the district will save about $1.4 million as it hires replacements at significantly lower salaries. But, Gretzula recently told Patch, there are concerns as well.

“Not only do our students lose experienced educators, our new hires have a diminished capacity to learn from their wonderful veteran colleagues,” he said. The longest tenured teacher whose retirement was accepted Wednesday was Linda Wallover, a third-grade teacher at Belmont, who was hired in 1971. She was followed in tenure by Belmont teachers:

• Renae Newhouse (1972)
• Karen Tarry (1975)
• Penelope Carboni (1975)
• Joseph Handzlik (1976)
• Janice Myketey (1986)
• Deanna Lieberman (1998)

Two other retirements were accepted from teachers Allan Jenne of Bensalem High School (1980) and Miriam Grahame of Valley Elementary (1991).

All of these retirements will come at the end of the school year, with Klingerman's official last day being July 7.