- Easterly Parkway Elementary
- Easterly Parkway Elementary School
David Hutchinson named PSBA’s Board of Directors president-elect
For 14 years on the State College Area School District Board of Directors, David Hutchinson has helped shape one of Pennsylvania’s best school districts. During that time, he also advocated for students and teachers statewide with the Pennsylvania School Board Association, the nonprofit organization representing public school districts.
Now, he’s poised to continue that leadership in a new capacity.
Recently, Hutchinson was elected the PSBA’s Board of Directors president-elect. He’s excited to take office Jan. 1 and begin overseeing the association’s “initiative to articulate a coherent, modern vision for public education.”
“We need to persuade the public that public education is worth supporting, and that it provides our students with not only the skills to be successful in the modern economy, but to also be effective and engaged citizens,” he said. “As a non-partisan organization, and because our members understand the local impact of legislation, PSBA is uniquely positioned to become the chief educator in the state of Pennsylvania on issues that affect public education.”
Hutchinson’s ties with PSBA go back years. Since 2007, he has served as the SCASD Board’s PSBA and legislation liaison. He first served on the PSBA Board of Directors from 2011 to 2014, and has worked on promoting good public policy and fostering relationships with legislators from both parties in various regional and statewide PSBA leadership positions this decade.
He said he believes the PSBA “has the opportunity to show the public how education is changing.”
“Unless you have children currently in school — or you are a school board member — your mental image of the classroom is probably what you experienced when you were in school. But the students currently in school will be graduating into a highly complex and inter-connected world,” he said. “They will have to be critical thinkers and creative problem-solvers; they will have to know how to work with others of diverse backgrounds, and to clearly communicate in ways beyond mere reading and writing. Our teachers must now create classrooms in which students work together and where every student is respected, valued, and a contributor. These are the schools our students need.”
A father of three State College Area High School alumni and fellow Penn State graduates, Hutchinson has been an active community voice during his 40 years in State College. His work has included leading the Public Issues Forum of Centre County, which has sponsored open conversations addressing a range of controversial topics, including standardized testing and the role of public education in the 21st century. He’s also a member of the National School Climate Council and the Pennsylvania Service-Learning Association.
Starting in January, he’ll have another outlet for bringing people together to achieve constructive change.
“We need to recognize that we have a responsibility to all the children of Pennsylvania, from those in the smallest rural communities to those in our cities. and that we need to articulate and advocate for strategies that address those unique challenges,” he said. “PSBA can, and should be, at the forefront of that effort.”