SFASD Approves Eckstine, Smith Resignations

The Spring-Ford Area School District officially approved the resignations of Band Director John E. Eckstine Jr. and Principal Edward J. Smith at Tuesday night's regular meeting.

Eckstine's resignation comes as no surprise after he informed the district on May 4 that he would no longer serve the school. After personal issues arose resulting in a vehicle accident and an arrest, Eckstine chose to resign on his own accord. His case goes to the Court of Common Pleas in Norristown on the morning of July 5.

At the beginning of the meeting, Kathy Bryant of Upper Providence spoke on the resignation.

"Prior to accepting any resignations tonight, if you had considered an escalating bad situation, perhaps you could have avoided the heartache and terrible publicity the board got," Bryant said. "Instead you were submersed in this Irish nonsense."

Board Vice President Joe Ciresi stopped Bryant from proceeding further.

"You have no clue!" Ciresi exclaimed. "It was a personal matter. You have no idea how far it went back. You have no idea what was documented and what wasn’t. You don’t think any of us care what happened there? You have no clue how many hours went on there. Run for school board and see what you find out. How many countless hours this man put into this program."

The discussion ended when the personnel matters were up for vote. Board member Ed Dressler praised Superintendent David Goodin for how he handled ongoing problems in Eckstine's "personal life."

"Dr. Goodin made every effort to keep the board informed of the situation that was alluded to," Dressler said. "I personally found no fault in any actions he took to try to remedy the situation. It goes without saying that the school district, school board and administration cannot take responsibility for self-destructive behavior that some choose to involve themselves in outside of school property. It was handled well by the administration."

Eckstine's resignation was approved unanimously.

Smith, according to minutes from the Owen J. Roberts School District, will be taking a principal position at West Vincent Elementary School for the 2012-13 school year. His resignation was approved unanimously, but not before he was praised by several board members.

"I would like to thank him for his service here at Spring-Ford," said Ciresi. "He's been a great administrator. I wish him luck. Hope his paths cross with the district again. His replacement has big shoes to fill."

Board members Dawn Heine and Julie Mullin agreed, saying their children benefitted from Smith's leadership.

"He was a huge bonus to that building," Mullin said. "As a board member and parent, [I] will miss him."

All other personnel items on the agenda were approved unanimously. Board Member Mark Dehnert abstained from voting on Item E (summer ESY support staff), as a family member was one of the hired individuals.

Board member Bernie Pettit praised the support staff mentioned in items F through O on the agenda for their hard work. A copy of the board agenda can be found at www.spring-ford.net.

"They are the backbone of our day-to-day operations," Pettit said.

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