BELLEFONTE — In a 30-minute, upbeat ceremony, Centre County judges Monday swore in 14 local officials who were elected Nov. 8.
The group included the newest judge to join the county bench, Jonathan D. Grine. He was sworn in by his retiring father, county Senior Judge David E. Grine.
Also taking oaths of office were county commissioners Steve Dershem, Chris Exarchos and Michael Pipe, all sworn in by county President Judge Thomas King Kistler.
All the oaths were administered in Courtroom No. 1 at the county courthouse, where all six county judges and dozens of observers gathered. They included District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller; U.S. Rep. Glenn ‘G.T.’ Thompson, R-Howard; state Sen. Jake Corman, R-Benner Township; and a number of local political leaders.
Interviewed later, Exarchos, returning to office after he lost a reelection bid in 2007, said he expects the incumbent Dershem will be named Board of Commissioners chairman on Monday afternoon. That’s when the new commissioners board will meet for its first organizational gathering.
Tradition holds that the top vote-getter in the majority party should be named the board chairman, Exarchos said. He and Dershem, of Bellefonte, both Republicans, represent the political majority on the board; Pipe, a State College Democrat, the political minority.
Also per tradition, the second-place vote-getter in the majority party is named the board vice chairman, Exarchos said. That suggests he will hold the vice chairmanship.
Exarchos, of College Township, was board chairman during his earlier four-year term, which ended in 2007.
The board in the past four years was marked by public tension and discord, as Democrat Rich Rogers and Dershem often butted heads with Jon Eich, a Democrat and the board chairman. Both Rogers, of Bellefonte, and Eich, of State College, lost their reelection bids in 2011.
Incoming commissioners said they expect the new board to work collaboratively and effectively.
‘I’ve got a real good, positive read’ that the new trio will work well together, Dershem said. ‘I’m very confident.’
He said he has already had numerous conversations with Exarchos and Pipe. He expects a discussion about 911-communications upgrades to be among the board’s top priorities this month.
‘Obviously, Michael has to get acclimated to the office and the responsibilities,’ Dershem said. ‘Chris has to get back up to speed.’
Exarchos agreed that 911 communications will be a high priority for the new board. He also expects the board will soon review the county budget and perhaps craft some adjustments.
He’ll be getting reintroduced with the county staff, as well, Exarchos said.
Pipe, for his part, said the new board will reopen the county budget. He will set up his Willowbank Building office Monday and began establishing lines of communication, he said.
‘The big thing that I’m going to have to do is, gain the trust’ of every county-government department, Pipe said. ‘ … I won’t just be a name; I’ll be an actual person.’
By year’s end, he said, he would like have sampled working in about 50 county jobs. The approach will give him insight across the county government and help him understand clearly how the budget is deployed, Pipe said.
As for collaboration, he said he is ‘not interested in attacking and taking down Chris and Steve.
‘I’m going to be making my best argument about an issue,’ Pipe said. And when each issue is decided, he said, he will be ready to move on to the next — no matter whether his arguments have won.
Another key, he said, will be transparency — and no secrecy — among the commissioners.
‘Centre County isn’t going to be dysfunctional,’ Pipe said. ‘ … We have a brand-new chance here.’
Others sworn in Monday — along with the standard oath of office — are listed below:
- District Judges Daniel R. Hoffman and Allen W. Sinclair
- County Controller Charles L. Witmer
- County Sheriff Denny Nau
- County Treasurer Richard A. Fornicola
- County Prothonotary Debra C. Immel
- County Recorder of Deeds Joseph L. Davidson
- County Register of Wills Kimberly A. Barton
- County Coroner Scott A. Sayers
- Bellefonte Borough Council member Renee Brown
Standard oath of office
- I, (name), do swear I will support, obey and defend the Constitution of the United State and the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and that I will perform the duties of my office with fidelity in the County of Centre; that I have not paid or contributed, or promised to pay or contribute either directly or indirectly, any money or valuable thing to procure my nomination or election, except for necessary and proper expenses expressly authorized by law; that I have not knowingly violated any election law of the Commonwealth or procured it to be done by others on my behalf; that I will not knowingly receive, directly or indirectly, any money or other valuable thing for the performance or non-performance of any act or duty pertaining to my office, other than the compensation allowed by law.
