Tarantella to Stay at Bucktail Complex
BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP – “The whole idea,” Keystone Central School Board Acting President Butch Knauff said, “is to protect the kids.”
With that the Keystone Central school board decided tonight to revise its security plans for the Bucktail school complex in Chapman Township. The district had planned to transfer security officer John Tarantella from the Renovo area to Central Mountain High School.
But those plans changed tonight, this after Tarantella announced last month he would retire as of Nov. 30, rather than commute to the southern end of the county. But Renovo area residents began a petition campaign to keep Tarantella at Bucktail High School and Renovo Elementary.
One of the petition organizers, Noyes Township supervisor Chris Graw, went before the school board tonight and along with Chapman Township supervisor Greg Wertz they asked the district to keep Tarantella at Bucktail while also utilizing Rob Getz, a new hire certified to carry a firearm (Tarantella is not) at the Farwell schools.
A lengthy discussion followed. Board member Charlie Rosamilia began when he said Tarantella has been a good employee and should be kept at Bucktail. He said if the board would agree to keep him there, Tarantella would withdraw his Nov. 30 resignation and serve through June 30.
The meeting saw Central Mountain Principal Steve Turchetta ask that if Tarantella stays in the western end of the district, he did not want to lose a security officer as Roy Schrack has just retired from a similar post at Central Mountain.
The board ultimately and unanimously agreed to keep Tarantella in Farwell and find a replacement for Schrack at Central Mountain.
In the meantime acting board president Knauff (who represents the Renovo area on the board) implored Graw and Wertz to pursue regional police protection in their townships. Currently only Renovo has local police protection, with two officers. Therecord-online has learned that South Renovo is interested in pursuing a possible regional force. Wertz in his initial comments said Chapman Township has no police and no money to hire any, citing the need for the replacement of a township-owned bridge which leads to the school complex.
Graw was critical as to how the district had handled its plans for Tarantella’s relocation to Central Mountain. She said the issue should be discussed “a little more.” As it turned out, Tarantella will stay at the two Farwell schools, Getz will also be utilized there, in addition to some hours in the lower end of the district, and the district will hire a replacement for Schrack to serve Central Mountain.
Knauff said he is a property owner in Chapman Township and will be at the next supervisors’ meeting to push for regional police in western Clinton County. He said now “is the time to work together to provide regional police.” In the meantime, he said, the district needs to provide security for its students at Bucktail High School and Renovo Elementary.
