Monument Woman Choice for Keystone Central Board Seat

FARWELL- Polly Donahay is the choice for the Keystone Central School Board’s vacant Region III seat.

Donahay was in attendance at the board work session Thursday night and was unanimously approved in a special voting session that followed. She was administered her oath by board secretary Joellen Chappelle and joined the board for the remainder of the meeting.

Donahay resides in Monument, is married and has two young daughters, one in the third grade at Liberty-Curtin Elementary, the other one and-a-half years old. The new board member attended Liberty-Curtin and graduated from Central Mountain High School in 2005.

An active volunteer at Liberty-Curtin, Donahay said she wants to continue “the positive changes for students, staff and the community” she is seeing and “is excited to be part of it.”

Donahay was the board pick in a non-public meeting that followed interviews with three candidates last week. The district’s Region III covers Liberty and Curtin townships in Centre County and Beech Creek Borough and Beech Creek Township in Clinton County.

The special board meeting Thursday also saw unanimous approval of the newly negotiated “early bird” contract with the Association of Clinton County Educators. Multiple board members thanked the teachers union for its recent two-year pay freeze vote as the district continues to grapple with achieving a balanced budget.

The board will return to Bucktail High School for its regular voting session meeting Thursday, May 16. That agenda will include a vote on the proposed final general fund budget first unveiled by the administration at a board committee meeting last week. It calls for a 2.49 percent real estate tax increase next year.