Stolz Admits Leaking East Penn School Board's Confidential Memo

On an evening in which “more government transparency” was the favorite catch phrase, a member of the East Penn School Board publically admitted to being the one who leaked a confidential memo to a Patch reporter in January.

Julian Stolz, who is running for reelection and whose future on the school board will be determined by the upcoming primary election on May 17, stated that he was responsible for sharing the confidential memo from Superintendent Dr. Thomas Seidenberger. His admission came as part of a “Meet the Candidates” night Tuesday, sponsored by the Concerned East Penn Taxpayers Association (CEPTA).

Stolz owned up to his role in the memo’s disclosure in response to an audience member’s question, directed at the three incumbents on the panel of school board candidates in attendance, asking for “a simple yes or no answer to a simple question: Did you leak the memo?”

“Yes I did,” Stolz said. “Would I do it again? Absolutely. I did it because it was information that the public needed to know.”

The memo in question was sent by Seidenberger to the board and detailed numerous programs, classes, activities and jobs that could be in jeopardy if the district did not get more revenue.

Stolz and nine other candidates for the East Penn School Board participated in the CEPTA candidates’ night, held in the South Sixth and Broad streets.

The school board candidates on the panel were, in alphabetical order: Scott Aquila, Kenneth Bacher, Charles H. Ballard, Lynn Donches, Jennifer Gilbert, Brian Higgins, Phillip Garrett Rhoades, Samuel Rhodes, Julian Stolz,  and Waldemar R. Vinovskis.

According to CEPTA’s format, each candidate was allowed a two-minute introduction, followed by questions from the audience. The Q & A period was supposed to be followed by a closing statement by each candidate.

However, the 100 or so people in the audience had so many questions for the board candidates that moderators asked them to vote, by show of hands, as to whether the Q&A period should continue in lieu of closing statements.

The vote to continue with the audience questions was unanimous.

CEPTA’s candidates’ night also included candidate panels from other local primaries, including Emmaus Borough Council, Lehigh County Commissioners, Lehigh County Judge and Upper Milford Township Board of Supervisors. Patch will bring you more on the CEPTA “Meet the Candidates” night on Wednesday.