Morgan supervisor re-elected as state association president
Morgan Township Supervisor Shirl Barnhart has been re-elected president of the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors and will serve another one-year term.
The election was held during PSATS’ 95th Annual Educational Conference and Trade Show in Hershey from April 23 to 26.
It is the largest municipal event of its kind in the state, with nearly 4,000 attendees. The conference attracted township officials from every county in Pennsylvania except Philadelphia, which has no townships.
Barnhart, 60, was elected to PSATS’ Executive Committee in 2002. Before his election as president last year, he served as first-vice president, second-vice president, secretary-treasurer and assistant secretary-treasurer. He also served as chairman of the executive board and as a member of several committees.
He is currently a member of the association’s Grassroots Lobbying Network, which addresses legislative issues that affect every Pennsylvanian who lives in a township of the second class, and is the board liaison to the Finance Committee. He was a 2007 recipient of the Governor’s Award for Local Government Excellence.
Barnhart is a roadmaster and the vice chairman of the board of supervisors in Morgan Township. He previously served as the emergency management coordinator and chairman of the board of supervisors.
He is chairman of the Jefferson-Morgan Council of Governments, is a member of the Izaak Walton League and the Mather Christian Church, and serves as a firefighter and emergency medical technician with Jefferson Volunteer Fire Company.
He also has served the Greene County Association of Township Officials as president and vice president and was a member, firefighter and emergency medical technician for Clarksville Volunteer Fire Company. Barnhart resides in Mather with his wife, Jane.
The president is a member of the association’s executive board with full voting rights. The board, which is responsible for managing the affairs of the state association, is made up of five PSATS officers, seven executive committee members, and the immediate past president. The board meets frequently throughout the year to conduct business and plan new projects that will benefit member townships.
PSATS represents Pennsylvania’s 1,454 townships of the second class and is designed to strengthen township government and secure greater visibility and involvement for townships in the state and federal political areas. Townships of the second class cover 95 percent of Pennsylvania’s land mass and represent more residents – 5.5 million – than any other type of political subdivision in the commonwealth.