Marple Newtown School Board elects Dana Altobelli president pro tem; Nicholas Siano sworn in

At its Dec. 1, 2025 reorganization meeting, the Marple Newtown School Board elected Dana Altobelli as president pro tem and administered the oath of office to at least one newly elected director.

A board member nominated Dana Altobelli for president pro tem; the presiding officer called individual roll-call votes and declared Altobelli elected. The board then considered certificates of election issued by the Commonwealth for the Nov. 4 election and listed recipients as Kate Byrne, Barb Harvey, Dave Desi and a name rendered in the transcript as "Nixciano." Shortly after, a speaker who identified himself in the transcript as Nicholas Siano recited the oath: "I do solemnly swear and affirm... that I will support, obey, and defend the Constitution of the United States." The administration handled distribution of the election certificates.

The board later opened nominations for vice president for 2026 and recorded a nomination for Nick (Nicholas) Siano; after a roll-call the presiding officer declared him vice president. The transcript contains inconsistent spellings of that surname in different places. The board moved immediately from the reorganization session into its regular meeting.

Those items were procedural and carried by roll-call or unanimous assent as recorded in the minutes; no contested nominations or substantive debate on these leadership appointments appear in the transcript. The board noted seven members were present for the regular session that followed.

Next steps: the board proceeded to routine business including approval of the 2026 meeting calendar and reappointment of the district solicitor, and then adjourned the meeting.