It's Not Too Early to Think About the 2013 NP School Board Election ... Have you met the Next S.T.E.P. candidates?

North Penn is the sixth largest school district in PA. Nine individuals make decisions that affect 13,000 students and their families, and the extended community of 95,000 residents. State budget cuts will continue to present challenges throughout the coming years. There will be many issues related to aging buildings and declining tax revenues. The following candidates offer a new approach to school district management based upon respect, transparency and community involvement:
   
Murali Balaji: Murali has worked as a professor at Lincoln University and Temple University, and was a journalist for eight years before making the transition to academia. Over the years, he has been and remains an active member of many professional and community organizations. Murali has worked as Mass Communications Program Director at Lincoln University and was the co-founder and executive director of The Voice of Philadelphia. After more than a decade of living in other parts of the country, he recently moved back to the North Penn area in order to have access to high quality public education when he starts his own family. As a resident of Towamencin Township and a North Penn alum himself, Murali hopes to extend the same world-class education he received to future generations of students.

Paul Edelman, Jr.: Paul, who has two children attending Gwynedd Square Elementary School, has attended NPSD school board meetings since 2009. He has frequently raised several concerns as an advocate for quality public education. Paul has worked as an assistant laboratory technician at Merck for sixteen years. Additionally, he has also worked as the parent representative for Gwynedd Square’s OLWEUS anti-bullying program and served as Vice President of Fundraising for the school's Home and School Association. Paul plans to continue to be the ears of parents looking for assistance and guidance with their children’s education.

Alex Ryabin: Alexis a resident of Montgomery Township and has two children attending schools in the North Penn School District. He is currently employed as a Director of IT at a Fortune 50 company, providing him with extensive experience in technology, business processes, finance, and governance. Along with wife Donna, he is an active participant in his children’s education extracurricular activities and believes that serving on the Board will be a unique opportunity to provide a direct and immediate contribution to the North Penn community.

Tina Stoll: Tina, a North Penn graduate ('83), has lived in Montgomery Township for 17 years. She and her husband Peter have three sons who went through the NPSD from kindergarten through high school. She currently works as the controller at her family's insurance agency, The Stoll Agency, Inc., in Chalfont. Tina served for five years as the president of NPHS’s 12th Knight Football Booster Club where she oversaw a period of tremendous growth and participation, while gaining hands on experience working with students, teachers, and administrators. She plans to use these relationships to guide her decisions as a school director and to deal with serious issues in a manner that continues North Penn’s history of excellence.

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