ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, May 7, 1996 TAG: 9605070063
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
A THIRD SEAT MAY OPEN up if School Board Chairman Nelson Harris is elected to City Council today.
Brian Wishneff, Roanoke's former chief of economic development, was named to the School Board on Monday, and Charles Day, a retired principal and teacher, was reappointed to another term.
City Council members chose Wishneff because he knows the business community, is experienced in obtaining grant funds for the city and has children in city schools, they said.
Day, they said, has done a good job as part of the board that hired Superintendent Wayne Harris.
Wishneff, 43, headed the city's economic development program for 17 years and is a consultant specializing in public-private partnerships.
Day, 61, has been a board member for six years and worked for city schools nearly 30 years before he retired.
They beat out candidates Martin Jeffrey and James Lowe Jr. in a vote that sharply divided council.
Wishneff and Day each received four votes.
Jeffrey, director of community development and outreach for Total Action Against Poverty, and Lowe, head of construction administration for Hayes, Seay, Mattern & Mattern, received two votes each.
Wishneff and Day were supported by Mayor David Bowers, Vice Mayor William White and Councilwoman Elizabeth Bowles.
Councilwoman Linda Wyatt voted for Wishneff and Jeffrey. Councilman Wendell Butler voted for Day and Jeffrey.
Councilmen Delvis "Mac" McCadden and John Parrott cast one ballot each for Lowe, but they did not vote for any of the three other finalists.
"I think Charles Day deserved to go back. He knows the school system, is a former board chairman and helped bring in [Wayne Harris]," Bowers said. "I thought [Wishneff] did well in the interview process. He has [three] children in school, and he is known to council as bright, articulate and concerned."
White said he voted to reappoint Day because of his strong education background, but it was a close call for the second appointment. "I thought all three had something to offer, but I picked Wishneff because of his exposure to the business community, his experience in building government-business partnerships and his experience in getting grants for the city."
Bowles said she hoped Wishneff could use his experience with the city to help obtain state and federal funds for the schools.
"He has children in school, has been active in Parent-Teacher Association and a Little League coach," she said. "I think he will be an asset on the School Board."
Wishneff said safe schools and educational basics would be his priorities when he takes office July1.
"I don't have a long laundry list of things, but I am extremely interested in assuring a safe environment in schools. That will be a concern of mine," Wishneff said. "I am also concerned about basic education."
In answering a question earlier about academic standards, he said, "We have not pushed our schools, out of fear of offending somebody. The lack of high standards and expectations for our schools has been a problem."
Wishneff also wants to increase the salaries of city teachers to the national average, lower the pupil-teacher ratio in classes and promote partnerships between the schools and business.
Wishneff will replace Finn Pincus, a board member for six years who did not seek reappointment because he wants to devote more time to his job as track and cross country coach at Roanoke College.
Day said he would focus on trying to raise the city's test scores and making sure that high school graduates are prepared to enter the job market if they aren't going to college.
Roanoke's scores on standardized tests are lower than several school systems in Western Virginia. School officials have set a goal of raising the number of students scoring above the 50th percentile by 4 percent each year.
Lowe said he was not surprised by the selection of Wishneff because council members have known and worked with him many years.
If School Board Chairman Nelson Harris is elected to City Council today, another vacancy would be created. Asked if he would be interested in seeking the post, Lowe said "perhaps," but he added he hasn't decided.
Jeffrey said he still believed he would have something to offer as a board member, but he didn't plan to apply again. He was an applicant last year when council filled two seats. However, if council should decide to fill any upcoming vacancy from the existing pool of applicants, Jeffrey said, he would be interested.
"I still think the board can benefit from having young people with children in school," said Jeffrey, who has three children in city schools.
LENGTH: Medium: 87 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshots) Day, Wishneff. color.by CNB