Marple Newtown Appoints New School Director Jim Lanzalotto

NEWTOWN SQUARE–Two candidates submitted their names in the hat for the replacement of Marple Newtown School Board Director Richard Sokorai's seat on the school board but in the end, candidate Jim Lanzalotto won unanimously in favor by the board.

Lanzalotto, with his family by his side, was sworn in by Delaware County Court of Common Pleas Judge Barry Dozer on Tuesday night.

The board voted 7-0 for Lanzalotto to replace Sokorai's place on the board, . Sokorai, who currently serves as the Newtown Township solicitor, previously stated his desire to spend more time with his two children.

Lanzalotto, who has lived in Marple and Newtown townships since 1992, is a father of three children–two at and one at . Lanzalotto shared during his interview at Tuesday's special school board meeting that now was the time to get involved.

"I have three little kids in the school district. I better be involved. I better be engaged," said Lanzalotto. "So, it's whether I'm coaching a team or my wife is doing stuff for the PTO, whatever it is, it's our time. I better be involved or shame on me."

Lanzalotto said he could add value to the board through his background in business as well as working on several non-profit boards.

"I think I can add a lot of value there, primarily from my business background. I've spents almost 30 years focusing on business strategy and marketing. And those types of things help you analyze situations, get a good understanding where issues are, and help you how to figure out how to resolve them," said Lanzalotto.

by board member John McDevitt to fill the seat of former school director and current Newtown supervisor Ed Partridge, who resigned from the board last June after .

He has previously served on the Board as well as the Cystic Fibrosis Board. In addition, and more recently, Lanzalotto served on the –a group that was formed by members of the school board to look at alternatives and ideas on ways to save costs as well as increase revenue for the district.

The other candidate that was submitted for consideration was Adam Braunstein, an educator and a Marple Township resident of six years. Braunstein is a father of two Marple Newtown School District children.

Several members of the board also bade farewell to Sokorai with well wishes. Sokorai shared his final thoughts with the board and noted he took pride in the many accomplishments that were taken by the board since he started and believed the board was "heading in the right direction."