Kristin Marcell Resigns Seat On Council Rock School Board

NEWTOWN BOROUGH, PA — The Council Rock School Board, meeting in special session on Thursday night, voted unanimously to accept the resignation of Region 9 school board member Kristin Marcell.

Following the vote, Marcell, who is stepping off the board to focus on her new job as a state lawmaker in the 178th district, received a standing ovation from her board colleagues.

Marcell has been a member of the school board for the past four and a half years representing Region 9, which includes all of Wrightstown Township and voting districts one and two in Newtown Township.

Marcell was originally appointed to the board in August 2018 following the resignation of Kyle McKessy. She won election in 2019 and re-election in 2021.

“As I’m sitting in this seat for the very last time I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the past, to thank everyone for their support and to offer my thoughts for the future of the district,” said Marcell.

Growing up here, Marcell said her memories of Council Rock began as a kindergarten student at the Chancellor Street School. “Then I remember being in my dad’s classroom at Wrightstown Elementary and in my step-mother’s class at Richboro Elementary,” she said.

“When I graduated from Council Rock and went to Penn State I never thought I would move back to this area with my own family and work alongside community members to save Wrightstown Elementary,” she said.

“I’d like to thank the many Wrightstown community members for showing me the importance of having a voice,” said Marcell. “I strongly believe that we have wonderful schools, wonderful students and community members that are worth advocating for every single day,” said Marcell. “I’m honored to have had the opportunity to help them and proud of what we can all achieve together for our kids now and into the future.”

The fight to save Wrightstown Elementary led to her appointment to the school board where she fought to reopen Council Rock and to end the mask mandate as the pandemic began to wane.

“When board members received an email from someone stating they hoped we would die from COVID, when some board members were emailed and called Nazis, it was very hard,” said Marcell. “This board has had very tough times that sometimes felt they would never end. My family and friends encouraged me to keep going for my kids, for their kids, for everyone’s kids. I couldn’t be prouder of the work we did as a board to do what was best for Council Rock children,” she said.

First and foremost Marcell thanked her family for putting up with the long hours spent away from home and for “standing by my side and encouraging me to move forward” despite the negativity.

She also thanked her board colleagues “for teaching me how to be a good board member, how to provide oversight and support the district and when to ask questions for the greater good of the community.”

Marcell also thanked the community for allowing her to serve.

“It’s been an absolute honor from day one through this moment. And thank you to the parents and people who spent so much time and effort trying to help the board make decisions for the kids and future generations.”

Looking ahead, she borrowed the words of former board solicitor Rob Cox who told the board as he was preparing to deploy overseas “to be good to each other.

“I have kept that moment very close ever since,” Marcell continued. “To the board and community, please listen to that advice. To those who are breeding division, that culture needs to change. Please be good to each other and listen to Rob Cox’s advice. Turn that energy into something positive for our district.

“Thank you to Council Rock for everything the district has provided to me and my family from kindergarten to now. I’m honored to have served and grateful to the district, parents, community and students for this amazing opportunity,” she said.

Her board colleagues were unanimous in their praise of Marcell.

"You don't really know what you've got until it's gone. This is one of those moments," said member Joe Hidalgo after listening to Marcell's remarks. "She has always been guided by her conscious. It's amazing that she's now going to take that to Harrisburg. I'm very happy she's going to be there to represent us."

"This was a difficult vote," said member Ed Roosevelt of his decision to accept Marcell's resignation. "I've appreciated your confidence, your compassion, your measured tone, your thoughtfulness, your considerate nature and your professionalism. It has really been a comfort to myself and a lot of other board members. You will be missed," he said. "I know this is the right move for you. You made a wonderful mark on this district and a wonderful mark on the board."

Yota Palli thanked Marcell for her service and everything she has done for Council Rock.

"One of the highlights for me when I joined was when we were visiting the schools together ... Everywhere we went people loved Kristin. She has the warmest smile I've ever seen. She smiles and a whole classroom would fall in love with her. Being such a warm person and so personable, I'm definitely not surprised you got elected to go to Harrisburg. I'm sure you're going to do a great job."

Board member Ed Tate added, "It was really a pleasure to work with Kristin over the years because she showed a real willingness to work with everybody on the board.

"I know she prides herself as being in the middle, being a bridge. She was very effective at doing that," said Tate. "There were times when votes looked like they were going to be 5 to 4 and Kristin would play a big part in shaping the final decision and reaching compromises, always for the best of the district. She's an excellent example of a board member who's not going to play politics and is going to work with everyone all the way around the table. It's been a pleasure."

Board president Ed Salamon said Kristin was the first board member he met. "We hit it off from that moment. We had a lot of like-minded ideas, but the best part of this young lady is that she is not afraid to argue with you."

Salamon said when discussing the issues with Kristin, it was never about politics. "It was about the kids. What's best for the kids? Kristin was one of the hardest working board members that you will probably ever see."

In addition to accepting Marcell’s resignation, the board approved a plan to fill the Region 9 vacancy.

Interested residents must submit a letter of interest and their resume to asanko@crsd.org by Feb. 16 at 4 p.m. The letters must be signed and include confirmation that they are a resident of region nine, that they have lived in the region for at least a year and are 18 years or older.

The school board will have 30 days to fill the vacancy, possibly voting to fill the seat as early as Feb. 28.

Whoever is appointed will hold the seat until the next election in November. The winner of the November election will then serve the remainder of Marcell’s term, which expires in 2025.