Pocono News Section

Pittston Area School Board Members Distance Themselves From Investigation

Pittston Area School Board Members Distance Themselves From Investigation - Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 11:55PM EST

YATESVILLE, LUZERNE COUNTY- Several Pittston School Board Members Tuesday night said they were confident they would not be caught up in a federal investigation that has to date brought down Superintendent Dr. Ross Scarantino. The longtime educator was charged last week with taking kickbacks in exchange for district contracts. Board Preident Mark Singer said a dark cloud hangs over Pittston Area.
At a board meeting, some members of the public blasted school board members for insulting their intelligence. Louise Parini said she couldn't believe members of the board didn't know about Scarantino's alleged actions. She went as far as calling them complicit in the mushrooming scandal that has investigators tracking years of school board minutes. Singer said the records still remain at the district administration building.

The FBI has been asking for the public's help in reporting instances where a teacher paid for a position. The investigation has focused on Wilkes-Barre Area and Pittston Area. It's said the probe is expanding and intensifying. Earlier Tuesday, Wilkes-Barre Area School Director Brian Dunne was charged with taking kickbacks. His arrest is the second in a week, following Scarantino's last Thursday. Scarantino has not returned several calls for comment. No one answered the door at his Duryea home. His attorney, Frank Nocito, did not a return a phone call. Scarantino is due back in federal court in three weeks.

Allegations of rampant nepotism have also bubbled to the surface and have fixated on board member Joe Oliveri. He denied any wrongdoing before Tuesday night's meeting and said he didn't believe the "FBI was interested in nepotism." Despite accusations to the contrary, Oliveri said he was unaware of any nepotism in Pittston Area. School board minutes obtained by Eyewitness News that are said to be the subject of the FBI's probe show several of Oliveri's relatives have gained employment in the district since he became a board member.