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ROARING SPRING -- In a 5-4 vote, the Spring Cove School Board hired Heather VanWinkle as Central High School's agriculture production teacher following nearly an hour of public comment and board discussion.
Board members Brian Gahagan, John Biddle, Floyd Deterline, Charles Gojmerac and Kelly Marks voted yes while Amy Acker-Knisely, Troy Wright, Samantha Snowberger and Linda Smith voted no.
Acker-Knisely made the initial motion to approve VanWinkle, with Gojmerac as a second. Smith then moved to table the agenda item pending further discussion. In order to table the item, board solicitor Jennifer Dambeck said that Acker-Knisely and Gojmerac would need to rescind their motions. Acker-Knisely said she was willing to do that but Gojmerac was not. Gojmerac asked to go into a second executive session to further discuss the matter as well as the idea of adding a second agriculture teacher.
Once the board returned, Gojmerac still would not rescind his motion, making the board vote on the item that was ultimately passed.
VanWinkle's employment will be effective Aug. 9, with her continued employment contingent upon obtaining valid Pennsylvania Agriculture Certification by the 2026-27 school year and meeting annual requirements for emergency certification before obtaining the agriculture certification, according to the meeting agenda.
Superintendent Betsy Baker said that the 2026-27 school year is just the deadline for VanWinkle to obtain her agriculture certification and that VanWinkle is scheduled to take a practice exam in a few weeks.
VanWinkle is taking classes and is expected to be certified in a matter of weeks, Baker said.
Almost a dozen community members signed up to address the board during Monday evening's meeting, all of whom expressed concern for the district's agriculture program and stressed the need for a qualified candidate.
Bethany Kensinger, who resides in the Spring Cove School District but works as an agriculture teacher at Northern Bedford County School District, said that whoever the district hires needs to be well-versed in agriculture.
"You do need to know the ins and outs of it; you can't just throw somebody in there that has no idea what they are doing," Kensinger said. "They will struggle and then they will ultimately quit."
She said that at NBC, there are two agriculture teachers even though its agriculture program enrollment is smaller than Spring Cove's.
"I was just made aware that we actually have less students enrolled in our ag program than you currently do and we have two teachers, which says a lot because there are days where I'm running around like a chicken with their head cut off," Kensinger said. "There's no way I could do it by myself."
Krystal Disney, who has children enrolled in the agriculture program, said that a candidate needs to be skilled and qualified with both experience and knowledge in agriculture.
"There is so much involved in all that Mr. (Tom) Ritchey has done with the ag program itself and with lots of different things in the community and it's vitally important that they understand and know what they're getting into," Disney said.
Melissa Brumbaugh called the ag program one of the district's "crown jewels" and said that she was nervous about VanWinkle's lack of a degree in agriculture. However, she said she was more worried about the program not continuing.
Brumbaugh asked the board to consider creating a committee of agricultural leaders from the community that VanWinkle could consult with. She said the committee could help VanWinkle with her curriculum and resources, as they would have more connections than VanWinkle, who is not a native of the area.
Brumbaugh also asked the board to "seriously consider" budgeting for a second either full-time or part-time agriculture teacher for the 2024-25 school year.
"I think what we're asking this candidate to fulfill is impossible," Brumbaugh said. "I know Tom and he even struggled the last while. We just ask that you be open minded."
VanWinkle, who is originally from Texas but moved to Pennsylvania eight years ago, said that this position is going to be an "exciting new adventure."
"I'm very excited and passionate about agriculture and teaching and learning," VanWinkle said.
VanWinkle earned a bachelor's in elementary education from Grand Canyon University, which she said she knows doesn't have anything to do with agriculture. However, she is talking to counselors at Iowa State University about earning a master's in agriculture education.
Now living on a crop farm, VanWinkle said she was in FFA for six years and that she earned her Lone Star degree, which is the equivalent of Pennsylvania's Keystone degree. She said she also has her welding certification, her Career Development Events and Leadership Development Events.
"Anyone in FFA or farming will know what those are," VanWinkle said.
Mirror Staff Writer Rachel Foor is at 814-946-7458.