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Despite protests
By JOHN HOINSKI
Staff Writer
Disgruntled parents, along with several board direc-
tors, voiced their objections for over an hour Monday
night in a last ditch effort to prevent the closing of the
third Dallas school in as many years. But despite their
feelings, the Dallas Area School Board voted 6-3 to
shut down the Dallas Township Elementary School at
the end of the current academic year.
Those voting in favor of the controversial issue were
Dr. William Camp, Thomas Landon, James Richard-
son, Harry Sickler, Tex Wilson and Donald Jones.
Those against were Ernest Ashbridge, John George
and Albert Pisaneschi.
In 1983, the district also closed the Trucksville and
Dallas elementary schools.
For the past few months, school administrators had
been mulling over the decision to close the 53-year old
structure and devise a new system of student distribu-
tion and, in particular, the housing of sixth and ninth
grade students in the same building. Most agreed,
including citizens, to close the school but not with
mixing the two groups in question.
Over the last six weeks, Superintendent Gerald
Wycallis had been meeting with PTO groups, fielding
concerns and offering input over the proposed move.
Those still against the plan who showed up at
Monday night’s session already surmised the shut-
down, but they, along with several board members,
made one last plea to overturn the proposition.
Director John George, aiming his questions at fellow
director Harry Sickler, asked, ‘Tell me Mr. Sickler,
why are you recommending to close this building?”’
Responded Sickler, “I have listened to many opin-
ions from teachers and administrators and other
groups and it is my personal opinion that it should be
closed.”
“The hell with your opinion,” fumed George. “What
about the people sitting out there who want solid
answers?”
“Why are you blaming me?’’ retorted Sickler. “I’m
not the only one voting. I’m not an engineer, but I
have a report from someone who is and I have to go
by their recommendations.”
Included in those recommendations was an estimate
(See BOARD, page 2)
BOX 334
BRIGHTON, 1a
5
L)
25 Cents
BISHOP JAMES TIMLIN
Center
. dedicated
The Mercy Center Bursing Unit, a
61-bed facility located in Mercy
Center, Dallas, was dedicated on
March 8. Bishop James C. Timlin
blessed the new facility.
The nursing unit occupies three
floors of A-Wing of Mercy Center.
On the ground floor, there are
physical and occupational therapy
rooms and dental and podiatry facil-
ities. There is also a doctor’s office
with a waiting room and examining
room.
The minimal care unit is located
on the first floor and the skilled
care unit is on the second floor. On
each floor there is a nurse’s station
and a day lounge, which looks out
on the grounds of Mercy Center and
the campus of College Misericordia.
The facility will be used to care
for members of the Sisters of
Mercy, Scranton Province, who are
retired and no longer able to care
for themselves. Occupancy of the
nursing unit will begin in April and
is expected to be completed in June.
The renovation of A-Wing was
designed by the Wilkes-Barre firm
of Pyros and Sanderson Architects
and Planners. Sordoni Construction
Company was general contractor.
Despite the elimination of yet
another Dallas Area school, Board
Superintendent Gerald Wycallis
says the immediate future of the
district is stable and that he does
not forsee any more shutdowns.
The closing of the Dallas Town-
ship Elementary Building on
Monday night marked the third
time in the last three years a school
both the Trucksville and. Dallas
elementary schools were closed.
And, despite the overall enrollment
decline, which began in 1976 and is
expected to continue through 1991,
no more crises in the way of school
eliminations are predicted.
“I don’t see a problem at least for
the next five years,” Wycallis said.
“We did see the closings of the
other buildings coming but, based
on projection figures, our elemen-
tary population is stable and I don’t
see any more problems along that
line based on those projections.”
From past studies those figures,
cwhich are arrived at prizgarily Dy
the number of births in a particular
school district, appear to be right on
the money. In 1977-78, the enroll-
ment of the Dallas Area School
District was 3508. The number of
students this year, taken from the
actual attendance register, stands
at 2545, only 12 students off from the
By JOHN HOINSKI
Staff Writer
Bernard Healey, an epidemiolo-
gist for the State Department of
Health, regularly works with
patients who either have or are
suspected of having AIDS and says
he has no fear whatsoever of con-
tracting the disease.
“I am not afraid at all because I
know about the illness,” Healey told
prison guards at the State Correc-
tional Institute at Dallas last week.
The lecture was part of a two-day
information session that was also
available to the inmates.
“Aside from AIDS itself, what
makes people so afraid of it is their
own ignorance. And I mean that in
the positive sense, in that they are
not informed about it.”
Healey says AIDS (Acquired
Immune Deficiency Syndrome) ‘is
not a disease, but a syndrome. It is
the failure of ‘the bodys’ natural
immunity system to fight off dis-
eases and can only be picked up in
certain situations.
“There was an incident in a
subway in New York where two
people were carrying on a normal
conversation,” Healey noted. Then
the man said, ‘Oh, by the way, I
have AIDS.” Well, the woman
started screaming that the guy next
to her had AIDS. Everybody pan-
icked, started running for the door,
and three people wound up being
injured trying to get out of the car.
_—t
:
7
Goal surpassed
7
Andrew McGowan,
Michael Larkin,
of
figure projected for this academic
year.
Statistics gathered by the Penn-
sylvania Economy League show
Cookies arrive
that the enrollment will continue to
spiral downward through 1991,
basing out at 2241 for Dallas Area, a
decline of 16.3 per cent. That figure
ranks the Back Montain school at
the mid-way point in relation to the
other school districts in the Wyo-
ming Valley, all of which are also
Lake Lehman will decline by 6.1
per cent overall, but in comparison
with the others, they are among the
As for the elementary population,
only three districts have experi-
enced sharper declines than Dallas
from 1978-79 to 1984-85. According to
John Metta, research associate for
the Pennsylvania Economy League,
Nanticoke topped the list with a 32.5
per cent drop, followed by Pittston
Area with 25.7 and Wyoming Area
at 29.2. Dallas was listed fourth with
GRADE 1986-87 1987-88 1988-89 1989-90
K 206 193 162 195
1 186 202 190 160 :
expected to experience dropoffs.
2 166 175 190 179 Pe P P
3 188 163 171 186
4 155 185 160 168
5 148 152 182 157
1049 1070 1055 1045 most stable.
175 143 147 176
188 184 150 154
164 188 184 150
527 515 481 480
9 212 147 168
10 233 214 149
11 ; 214 211 193 134
12 232 211 208 190 ‘a 23.9 per cent listing.
: 891 783 718 660
TOTALS 2467 2254 2185
(These figures are projected for
the Dallas School District and have
been prepared by the Pennsylvania
Department of Education Historic
Enrollments as reported on PDE-
4035.)
— JOHN HOINSKI
Dallas Post/Ed Campbell
left, Frank Metzger,
George Peterson,
Daffodil Days
have arrived!
15.
daffodils.
will be offered.
&
Wilson
named to
position
Dy. Bruce L. Wilson, former pres-
ident of Beaver College in suburban
Philadelphia, has been appointed
Dean of institutional advancement
at College Misericordia. The
announcement was made by Dr.
Joseph R. Fink, college president.
“Dr. Wilson brings us a wealth of
educational experience on several
different levels of higher educa-
tion,” said Dr. Fink. “As a former
college president, he has invaluable
understanding and insignt into the
total institutional advancement
function.”
In his present position, Dr. Wilson
is responsible for foundations and
grants, annual campaign, alumni
affairs, public relations and other
elements of institutional marketing.
In additiion, he will serve as a
member of the college’s executive
management team.
Prior to assuming the presidency
of Beaver College, Dr. Wilson was
the second ranking college officer
and dean of the faculty at Elizabeth-
town College. He also served as the
dean of the center for continuing
education and coordinator of plan-
ning at Guildord College in North
Carolina; assistant professor at
Pennsylvania State University, Uni-
versity Park; and instructor at the
University of Minnesota.
Dr.. Wilson earned a doctorate
from the University of Minnesota
and attended the Frederich Wilhelm
University in Germany as a Ful-
bright graduate scholar.
Church slates
Revival services
Dallas Baptist Church, Idetown,
announces that the ‘‘Good News
America, God Loves You” Revival
will begin Sunday, March 16 at 11
a.m. Evening services will be held
on four consecutive nights.
Sunday’s evening service will
begin at 7 p.m.; other evening
services will begin at 7:30 p.m.
Child care will be provided for pre-
schoolers.
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