FARRELL School board picks trooper as coach

An unexpected resignation left the basketball program in turmoil.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
FARRELL, Pa. -- About 100 people jammed into the Farrell School Board meeting room to see what the board planned to do about filling the head basketball coaching position.
When the board voted to name Roland Shannonhouse, the ninth-grade coach, as interim varsity head coach for the rest of the year, the room erupted in applause and cheers.
Filling the coaching post after the surprise resignation of Michael DeCello three weeks ago has been a hot topic, said Michael Wright, board president.
Naming Shannonhouse, whose regular job is as a Pennsylvania state trooper, is a temporary fix, he said, noting the job will be opened for applications after the 2003-04 season.
7-1 vote
The board's vote wasn't unanimous. It was 7-1, with Larry Manilla casting the dissenting vote and James Guerino abstaining. Manilla didn't offer an immediate explanation for his vote. Guerino said later he abstained because of his uncertainty over the coaching situation. He said he considers Shannonhouse to be "an excellent, excellent young man" and "a fine leader."
Members of the varsity basketball team joined the crowd in backing Shannonhouse for the job.
Six of them appeared before the board with senior Brian Dungee reading a statement supporting Shannonhouse.
The Rev. Martha Sanders, a former city councilwoman, read a prepared statement in which she urged the board to hire more black role models. Shannonhouse is black.
Cultural diversity issue
The district, whose student enrollment is 76 percent black, has only one black male teacher and 10 black female teachers, Sanders said, noting that residents see the lack of black role models in the district as "systemic racism."
She called on the board to dispel the public's concerns and to commit itself to cultural diversity.
Sanders said she wasn't at the meeting because of the basketball issue but supports the selection of Shannonhouse.
Wright, who also is black, took exception to some of the criticism directed at the board, saying there are people on the board who are trying to make a difference.
Change takes time, he told the crowd.
"All of these people have tried to do the right thing," Wright said of the school board. "It's not about color. This isn't a race issue."
"Tonight, we appointed a black gentleman who is a very good role model. We shouldn't have to look at race," said board member Lester Robinson Jr., who also is black.
gwin@vindy.com