Palmerton Area School District has selected veteran educator Marlena Stroup — praised by district leadership as a student-centered and highly committed leader — as the next principal of S.S. Palmer Elementary and Parkside Education Center.

Stroup was approved by a 7-2 vote at Tuesday night’s meeting, with board members Danielle Paules and Earl Paules voting no. The board also approved a prorated $98,000 salary under the district’s Act 93 agreement.

Stroup, who attended the meeting, said she was eager to begin.

“I’m very excited to be here in Palmerton and to be leading S.S. Palmer and Parkside as the new principal,” she said. “I’ve been a teacher and ESL specialist for 24 years, and I recently completed my principal certification through Moravian University.”

She added that the position was “an honor and a privilege,” and said she hopes families will find her approachable.

“I’m very friendly and outgoing, and I’ll do anything to help the students and their families,” she said. “My goal is to take what we have and work toward making things more positive and better.”

Experience vs. salary

Before the vote, director Danielle Paules read a prepared statement raising concerns about the hiring process and salary level.

She said hiring a first-time principal at $98,000 “without board discussion is unfair to the staff who have earned their positions and worked their way up.”

“If we set this precedent, every Act 93 member will understandably seek an increase, and that is not fiscally responsible to our taxpayers,” Paules said.

Former S.S. Palmer/Parkside Principal Ralph Andrews started at $90,000 when he was hired in 2021. Kelli George was also hired at $90,000 as Towamensing Elementary principal in 2022.

Paulus also questioned whether the district was applying its own experience requirements consistently.

“The qualifications required experience in supervision and evaluations, which this candidate does not have,” she said.

She noted that three internal applicants had recently been turned away from administrative positions for lacking supervisory experience.

“If experience matters for those roles, how can we ignore it when it’s one of the most critical leadership positions in our district?” she asked. “Our students, staff and community members deserve a principal who is fully prepared for day one, not someone learning on the job at their expense.”

Superintendent: Stroup best candidate for job

Superintendent Dr. Angela Friebolin, who also worked at Whitehall before being hired by Palmerton last year, offered a strong endorsement of Stroup during her report earlier in the meeting.

Friebolin described Stroup as “a dedicated and student-centered educational leader whose career reflects a deep commitment to excellence for all learners.”

She outlined Stroup’s professional background, noting that she currently serves as the ESL facilitator for grades K-12 in the Whitehall-Coplay School District, where she leads districtwide teacher development initiatives. Stroup also completed her administrative internship and principal certification work at both the middle school and high school levels.

Stroup spent 16 years as an ESL specialist at Zephyr Elementary School and previously worked with students at Whitehall-Coplay Middle School and Steckel Elementary. Earlier in her career, she taught in the Allentown School District.

Friebolin highlighted Stroup’s academic credentials, which include a bachelor’s degree from Penn State, a master’s degree from DeSales University and principal certification from Moravian University. Stroup is pursuing a doctorate in transformational leadership from Moravian.

The superintendent also emphasized the new principal’s connection to the district. “Her children all attended Palmerton schools, and Parkside and Palmer hold a special place in her heart,” she said. “There is no better candidate for this position. Her current employer begged me not to steal her, but I told them, ‘I’m not stealing her. I’m bringing her home.’ ”