CLEARFIELD – The Girard Township tax collector has been accused of approximately $50,000 worth of improprieties after the Clearfield Area School District’s auditor performed a review of local tax collectors, announced Sam Maney, business administrator, at Monday’s regular school board meeting.
Lucinda Ann Cardinale, 58, of Frenchville has been charged with theft by unlawful taking and theft by failure to make required disposition of funds. Both are third-degree felonies. Cardinale’s preliminary hearing has been scheduled for 10:15 a.m. April 23 at the Clearfield County Jail, according to online court documents.
The district, Maney said, hired Walter Hopkins Company LLP of Clearfield to review its local tax collectors. The purpose, he said, was to ensure all of the due money was being turned over to the district. As a result of the auditor’s review, Maney said three tax collectors were found with discrepancies.
Of those he said the district had settled with two tax collectors, and that money had already been turned over to the district. “The last one, Girard Township, we found some improprieties in the numbers,” he said. Upon making this finding, Maney said they notified the Clearfield County District Attorney’s Office, which referred them to the state police.
On Monday, Maney said he learned from the state police that the charges had been filed against Cardinale through the office of Magisterial District Judge Jerome Nevling. He was also asked to appear as a witness at Cardinale’s preliminary hearing on April 23.
If there would be charges and a conviction, Maney said the district could get recourse through Cardinale’s bond. Cardinale was bonded $10,000 – $11,000 annually with a four-year bond, he said.
In other business, the district approved employee resignations that were a part of the early retirement incentive. In January, the district approved an early retirement incentive, and its purpose was two-fold. It was to create a savings for the district and also to help with the realignment of staff with the upcoming school building consolidation.
The district has embarked upon a $36 million expansion and renovation of the Clearfield Area High School and a $10.6 million expansion and renovation of the Clearfield Elementary School.
The district has voted to permanently close the Clearfield Area Middle School and to convert the CAHS into a 7-12 campus. The district has also voted to permanently close Girard-Goshen, Centre and Bradford Township Elementary Schools and to convert the CES into a K-6 campus.
On Monday night, the board approved resignations from the following employees who want to take advantage of the early retirement incentive. The employees included: Alan Murphy, Dan Kennedy, Bonnie Boyce, Cindy Collins, Forrest Campman, Dana Greiner, Mary Hindman, Paul Jefferies, Vickie Morgan, Sarah Laux, Kathryn Cillo, Donna Moore, Nannette Rougeux, Brenda Bowes, Beth Helsel, Melody Read, Joy Lhota, Virginia Spencer, Pam Pagnotto, Rebecca Short, Dennis Zelenky, Margaret Hand, Michael Gill, Karen Beish, Deborah Graham and Joan Irwin, all effective at the end of the school year.
Other approved retirements were Cathy Sones (end of the school year); Sharon Stiles on June 10; and Sue Rumfola, Pat Partash, Lynne Peacock, Carol Emigh, Debbie Rickard, Connie Hepfer, Sally Ireland, Sharon Fye and Debora Crowley, all on dates to be determined. Also retirements approved were Mary Curry, effective April 11, Judy Merritts on June 30 and Robin Lumadue on a date to be determined. Non-bargaining retirements approved were Rose Leavy, Dealyn Taylor and Kathy Luzier on dates to be determined.
The district had a higher number of retirements than usual due to the early retirement incentive, said Maney after last week’s committee meetings. Superintendent Terry Struble also noted last week that the employees who haven’t selected a retirement date will help the district with the transition process with the new employees coming in.
The board also approved the creation of professional positions for next school year. When asked last week, Struble indicated the district will have 185 professional staff members next school year with 183 positions being a full-time equivalent.
