Four Inducted to Pottstown Alumni Honor Roll

Photo Courtesy of the Pottstown School District

From left, Augustus "Barney" Levengood, Danielle McCoy, Michael V. Fisher and Richard Frerichs with their Pottstown High School Alumni Honor Roll Awards.

Four new Pottstown High School alumni have been  inducted into the Pottstown School District's Alumni Honor Roll.

They are Dr. Richard Frerichs, class of 1960; Augustus "Barney" Levengood, class of 1972; Michael V. Fisher, class of 1975 and Danielle McCoy, class of 1982.

Frerichs is a Millersville University professor emeritus, vice chair of the Millersville University Council of Trustees and the 2014 President of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association.

Richard Frerichs

He graduated in 1963 with a teaching degree from what was then Millersville State College and took a job teaching biology in the Neshaminy School District. There, he also coached track and cross country.

In 1968, he returned to Millersville as the assistant Dean of Men and cross-country and track coach. During his tenure at Millersville, Frerichs held a variety of positions, before retiring in 2004 as the chair of the department of Educational Foundations.

Frerichs received his doctorate from the University of Delaware. As recognition to his commitment to the students and mission of Millersville University, Frerichs was named Person of the Year by the Student Senate and, in 2012, was awadred the President's Medallion.

For more than 40 years, Frerichs was the public address voice of the school's football team and the women's basketball teach for more than 30 years.

After his retirement, Frerichs was inducted into the Millersville University Athletic Hall of Fame.

Levengood has been the executive director of the Indiana Convention Center and Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the 2006 world champion Indianapolis Colts, since 1991.

He oversaw the $103 million expansions at both the convention center and stadium, which is estimated to have brought more than $2.25 billion into the city's economy, while supporting more than 74,000 jobs.

Augustus "Barney" Levengood

Additionally, Levengood helped to manage Bankers Life Field House, home of the Indiana Pacers, and Toledo Ohio's SeaGate Centre.

Previously, Levengood has been the director of building and client services at the Baltomore Convention Center and directro of operations at the Baltimore Civi Arena.

Levengood also worked as Towson University managing the arena, stadium and student union building.

After graduating from Pottstown, Levengood attended East Stroudsburg and later earned a master's degree from Ohio University. He is a member of the Indiana Society of Association Executives, International Association of Exposition Managers, Religious Conference Management Association, International Association of Assembly managers and the Stadium managers Association.

Fisher has more than 30 years of experience in the retail industry with a focus on branding, marketing and visual display design.

After graduating from Pottstown, Fisher attended temple University's Tyler School of Art, where he earned a bachelors of fine arts in painting.

After college, Fisher worked as an illustrator and fashion designer in New York City, positions which led to designing window displays for retail stores.

Michael V. Fisher

He spent several years in the visual department of Bloomingdales, where he rose to creative director. His use of women's fashion alongside color-coordinated Apple computers led to a job offer from Steve Jobs to oversee merchandising and store design for Apple.

Fisher's minimalist approach to store design, marketing and visual merchandising came to define Apple stories worldwide.

In addition to senior creative director at Apple, Fisher has also held the position of senior vice president for marketing at Ralph Lauren's Club Monaco division, chief creative officer at JC Penney and he oversaw Coach's retail expansion in Japan.

He is currently handling a variety of creative projects through is company, MYKNYC.com.

While a student at Pottstown High School, McCoy was involved in many activities including National Honor Society, Class Cabinet, PHS News, Drama Club, prom committee and homecoming.

She graduated from Shippensburg University with a bachelor of science in business administration with a concentration in total information systems.

She spent several years working in the banking industry as a teller, retail banking

manager before attending to Temple University to earn teaching certifications in accounting, marketing, computer applications and social studies.

Danielle McCoy

While at Temple, McCoy also earned a masters of education in curriculum, instruction and technology as well as the College of Education Teacher Education Graduate in Career and Technical Education Award.

In 2000, McCoy joined the staff of Pottstown High School. She spent two years as the gifted support instructor, followed by six years as a business education teacher.

During that time she earned her principal's certification and vocational administrative directors certifications. In 2009, she became the director of Career and Technical Education at Pottstown High School where she added three new programs to the school's vocational offerings.

At various times in her career at Pottstown, McCoy has been a class advisor, student government advisor, graduation project coordinator, homecoming advisor, history day advisor, job readiness coordinator, 21st century coordinator and the supervisor of secondary special education.

She is also the recipient of the YWCA TriCounty's Exceptional Women in Education Award and serves on the board of directors of the Foundation for Pottstown Education, as well as being a member of teh NAACP.

McCoy currently serves as the first female and first alumnus to be principal of Pottstown High School.

This year's inductees to the Pottstown High School Alumni Honor Roll with the student presenters.

Two New Principals and a Uniform Debate

With the help of a telephone, the Pottstown School Board mustered a quorum Thursday night to conduct their business.

With four members  absent -- Polly Weand, Mary-Beth Bacallao, Judyth Zahora and the perennially absent Amy Francis -- the meeting got underway with Vice President Andrew Kefer at the helm.

(Zahora joined later by phone.)

During the workshop meeting, it became evident only to close readers of the agenda -- available only in physical form and not on-line as the web site proclaims it will be -- that Pottstown High School Principal Jeff Hartman has resigned.

It was equally evident that Danielle McCoy, currently the district's director of Career and Technical Education, will take his place.

It was equally evident from a close reading of the agenda, that David Todd, currently the assistant principal at Pottstown Middle School, will be promoted to take the place of retiring principal Gail Cooper.

There was no discussion of this change in building leadership, nor was it remarked upon by Superintendent Jeff Sparagana when he reviewed the 45 other personnel items consuming nearly seven pages of the 11-page agenda.

The school board was equally silent.

The board members were less silent about whether or not to change the uniform policy for Pottstown High School.

If I were a betting man, which lack of income happily prevents, I would put my money on the board voting Monday to lift the uniform policy in exchange for the previous "dress code," which is what the high school students followed from May 4 to June 18.

As for the rest of the school buildings, don't hold your breath.

But, as board member Tom Hylton noted, it will all depend on who shows up to vote.

Here are the Tweets from last night's meeting.