Erie City School Board elects Dr. Brennaman president, Angie Amatangelo vice president

The Erie City School District Board of Directors convened for its reorganization meeting on Dec. 3, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. and swore in newly elected directors before electing leadership for the coming year. Dr. Brennaman was elected president and Angie Amatangelo was elected vice president.

Why it matters: The annual reorganization sets who will guide board procedure and committee appointments for the year ahead. Those leadership choices shape how the board handles its strategic plan and priorities introduced by the new superintendent and newly seated members.

Nominations and votes: The board opened nominations for a temporary chair to preside over the elections and nominated John Harkins, who was elected by voice vote to serve as temporary chair. Nominations were then called for president; John Harkins nominated Doctor Brennaman, a second was recorded and nominations were closed. A roll-call vote followed. The transcript records individual yes/no responses from members and the presiding officer declared Dr. Brennaman president of the Erie School Board.

For the vice president race, Angie Amatangelo and Zachariah Sharif were nominated. A roll-call vote on Amatangelo was taken and the chair announced the result as passing 5–4; Angie Amatangelo was declared vice president. The meeting record includes spoken yes/no responses for multiple members during the roll calls; the chair announced the outcomes immediately after the tallies were reported.

Oaths and seating: The newly elected directors — including Jay (Jay Brennan/Brennaman), Gary N. Horton, Leah Mirsky, and Zachariah Sharif — repeated the oath of office and were welcomed by the board. Several members offered brief remarks after being seated.

Comments from board members: Gary N. Horton used his remarks to emphasize youth leadership, parent engagement and support for the new superintendent. Horton said he "ran for the seat for you" and described plans to pursue a "new American parent advisory council" and to explore adding Swahili and Arabic language offerings. President Brennaman thanked colleagues and described his role as a facilitator for the board.

Next steps: The board noted its next regular meeting is scheduled for Dec. 10, 2025 (committee meeting at 5:00 p.m., regular meeting at 6:00 p.m.). The board also announced a community information session about a proposed renaming of Harding Elementary to take place the following evening at Harding.

Notes on the record: The board secretary was described on the record as a position created by state statute during the organization portion of the meeting. Vote counts were announced by roll call and, where individual responses were audible in the transcript, recorded as yes or no; some responses in the audio/transcript were unclear or abbreviated, and the chair supplied the final tallies.