July 2, 2009 Dear Highland Park neighbors, As you all have probably heard, Heather Arnet is resigning from the school board. The mayor will appoint a replacement that will hold the seat until the next municipal election in November 2011. I believe that I would be a powerful voice for District 2 and all of our city's students and will be seeking this appointment. I have been volunteering is the PPS for the last 15 years and I have been active in the elections of our last two school board members. I feel that it is now time to move from behind the scenes and pursue this appointment. If appointed, I am committed to maintaining a continued focus on a common sense approach to increasing student achievement while keeping a watchful eye on the budget to ensure wise use of taxpayers' money. I have no further political ambitions and with the departure of my son to college this year I am in the position to dedicate the necessary time that this important position requires. With major changes occurring in our schools, it is more important than ever that we have a well-informed school board director with a vision for a school district that will provide a quality education for all of our children. I am attaching a copy of the resume that I am submitting to the mayor and am asking you, who have shown a commitment to good school board governance, to contact the mayor's office to ask him to appoint me to the position of District 2 School Board Director. The mayor is required to make this appointment in the next thirty days, so any support that you are willing to offer must be sent without delay. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl Mayor's Office Room 512 City-County Building 414 Grant Street Pittsburgh, PA 15219 412-255-2626 pghschoolboard@city.pittsburgh.pa.us In the spirit of our phenomenal grass roots efforts of the past, if each of you recruited 2-5 other city residents to write a letter of support, our voices would be strengthened exponentially! I thank you all for your past and continued advocacy for our public schools. Sincerely, Kathy Fine