Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 151, No. 47
INSIDE
U-CF Board hears from Chesco more parents about Dance Center presents three district’s disciplinary policy performances of ‘The Nutcracker’ By John Chambless Staff Writer
Kennett Square Life magazine
Unionville advances to the District 1 title game ...2A
Courtesy photo
Performances of "The Nutcracker" are set for Dec. 2 and Dec. 10.
By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer Approximately 75 local boys and girls between the Holiday shopping at the ages of 3 and 18 will be starOxford Arts Alliance...1C ring in three performances of “The Nutcracker” for audiences this Christmas season. “‘The Nutcracker’ is a magical ballet, and it’s a magical time of the year,” said Kellie Gwaltney-Greer, the owner of the Chesco Dance Center who is directing the show. “It’s a great
Traditions continue at ‘A Brandywine Christmas’...1D
INDEX Opinion........................7A Calendar of Events.....2C
By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
For most of 2012 and 2013, Scudder Stevens sat Police Blotter..............7C at the end of the table at board meetings as the newly-elected member of the Kennett Township Board of Supervisors, and was largely quiet for most of them. Seated beside him were two of the last vestiges of the Republican-based “Old Boys Network” of the township’s politics, while Classifieds..................6C
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production for all ages and all skill levels, and we have lots of local kids involved in the production.” The first performance will be held during Avon Grove’s annual Country Christmas celebration at Avon Grove Intermediate School on Saturday, Dec. 2. Two full performances take place at the Unionville High School at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 10. Gwaltney-Greer said that Continued on Page 5A
The fallout from a Sept. 8 football game at Unionville High School continues for students who were suspended after being accused of drinking alcohol or smoking e-cigarettes on school property. At their Nov. 20 meeting, the Unionville-Chadds Ford School Board heard from several residents who first thanked the board for addressing the district’s disciplinary policy at last week’s meeting, and for voicing concerns that the current penalties are too harsh. In an email to parents last month, Unionville principal James Conley wrote, “Numerous students received disciplinary action because of their behavior at the game. We’re learning that some kids have done this previously at games. After a thorough investigation, the students we know to be involved have been suspended.” Students who confessed to smoking got three-day suspensions. Students suspected of drinking at the game got 10-day suspensions. During public comment at the end of the board meeting, Drew Hoffman, who has three children in district schools, said he appreci-
ated the long discussion at last week’s board meeting, during which board members discussed the severity of the policy as written. “Under the current system, despite the infraction, there is one standard punishment,” Hoffman said. “Being the parent of a daughter who was at the football game and was suspended, I’m seeing what it’s done to my daugher, who was an A student, taking honors classes. I see her slowly come down to a shell of her former self. At that age, you shoudn’t have a mistake put you on a different path to success. There should be some way to redeem yourself. I’m not trying to minimize it. But to me, this was a chance to learn and bond with the student body. Making a bomb threat should not be the same thing as sipping alcohol on campus, or smoking. “I am confident that my daughter will get back on track, but she’s a sophomore now,” Hoffman said. “I don’t want her to be a senior and this thing is still there, and there’s nothing she can do to get it off there. It may end up derailing her college dreams.” Wendy Landry, who is a teacher at Patton Middle School, told the board, “When you’re looking at these policies to change,
keep in mind some important things. We talk about wellness of students in this district, but think what a suspension does to their emotional health. Being out of the classroom for 10 days, that’s really hard. I’d like to see you include flexibility within your disciplinary code, some consideration for the kind of offense, or for first-time offenses, and have opportunities for second chances. We are in the business of students, and they are kids. They need us to build them up, not tear them down.” Shannon Impagliazzo, who has four students in the district, said, “I have a daughter who was involved in the incident. I think a lot can be learned from the unfortunate experiences that these kids have gone through. What took us aback was that outof-school suspensions still exist. To me, unless a student is a danger to themselves or someone else, there’s no reason for them not to be at school. The disruption that occurs in a student’s life when they’re out of school, I can barely put it into words. I very strongly feel that any number of days out of school will not be beneficial. The disruption, trying to make up the work, is an immense climb for them. I Continued on Page 6A
Now what? Stevens begins his second term on Kennett board
Obituaries....................4C
© 2007 The Chester County Press
60 Cents
Wednesday, November 22, 2017
the second line support of that contingent who had formed the veritable spine of township business for the past several decades, sat glaring at him. To all of them, Stevens was the outlier, the unknown quantity with the bow tie and an axe to grind, the interrupter of normalcy. He had just defeated Republican incumbent Allan Falcoff in a contentious campaign that called for transparency in a town-
ship that had run efficiently yet secretively -- and the fallback of his victory was palpable. His voice at meetings was stifled, his lone dissenting votes were useless on a three-person board made up of two Republicans and, in the cruelest fate of all, his supervisors’ desk was placed in the attic of the township building, away from the office occupied by fellow supervisors Michael Elling and Robert Hammaker.
Photo by Richard L. Gaw
Scudder Stevens was elected to his second term as Kennett Township Supervisor on Nov. 7, after running unopposed.
For two years, Scudder Stevens looked like the loneliest guy in the world. “After one of those early meetings, there was an executive session in the conference room,” Stevens
said. “I turned to Mr. Elling and asked him, ‘Why are you acting this way?’ Mr. Elling looked at me and said, ‘It’s because you’re the enemy.’ I looked at him Continued on Page 3A
Between 800-1,000 winter coats will be distributed to Kennett area groups
Church service recognizes community coat drive efforts By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer A small mountain of generosity, seen in the form of generous boxes and piles of more than 800 winter coats collected all over southern Chester County, dominated the area behind the pulpit of the Unionville Presbyterian Church last Sunday evening, as a congregation of more than 150 attended a service that gave thanks to the generosity of individuals and groups who will help to keep their neighbors warm this winter. Presided over by church pastor Annalie Korengel, the hour-long service hon-
By Uncle Irvin
Square, Genesis HealthCare and the Kendal Crosslands Communities for their dedication in spearheading an
For the first time in more than two centuries, the Democratic Party of Chester County has elected four of their own to county row offices, including County Treasurer and Controller. In some ways, this is not as surprising as it seems. Population increases and a change of new voters has already given Democrats a big boost in party registration over the past 20 years. The two parties are now virtually the same. Democrats have already carried the county in the Presidential and Senatorial elections, but have failed in county races quite miserably. Now, with a little help from the widespread discontent over President Trump and the reckless and failed leadership of the last two GOP County Chairmen, Skip Brion and Val DiGiorgio, the GOP County Committee has virtually collapsed. A couple of things we can look for: Next year’s General Assembly races and the fate of GOP incumbents John Lawrence and Eric Roe, and Republican Congressmen Ryan Costello and Pat Meehan.
Continued on Page 6A
Continued on Page 3A
Photo by Richard L. Gaw
A congregation of 150 packed the Unionville Presbyterian Church on Nov. 19 to honor the local groups who helped to collect between 800-1,000 winter coats for distribution to six Kennett-area organizations.
ored the volunteer work of the Kennett Township Police Department, the Longwood Fire Company, the Rotary Club of Kennett
D’s ‘Trump’ R’s