I am excited to be part of The National Children’s Study in Schuylkill County. As a Commissioner, I have the opportunity to be an advocate for our County. My life has been dedicated to Schuylkill County residents of all ages and backgrounds; therefore, I am looking forward to our children being a part of such an amazing Study helping generations to come.
During a career in education that spanned more than 31 years in the Pottsville Area School District, Mantura Gallagher taught Spanish and English to seventh grade students at the D.H.H. Lengel Middle School, where she also served as lead teacher. Following her career in the classroom, Commissioner Gallagher was elected in 2003 to a four-year term to the Schuylkill County Board of Commissioners as the county's second female Commissioner. In 2007 she was re-elected to office and currently serves as Schuylkill County's first female chair of the Board of Commissioners.
Among her duties Commissioner Gallagher acts as a liaison to all of the Human Services, including Mental Health/Mental Retardation, Children and Youth, Office of Senior Services, Drug and Alcohol, and Rest Haven. In addition to those agencies, she also works closely with
Voter Registration, Veterans' Affairs, and Central Services. A member of the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP) Human Services Committee, Commissioner Gallagher is also a graduate of the CCAP Academy of Excellence for County Government and has completed the course requirements for Advanced Academy certification as well. She has been subsequently named Chairperson of the CCAP Academy for Excellence Advisory Board, beginning her term in 2010. Commissioner Gallagher has been elected to the CCAP Board of Directors, where she represents Berks, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Northampton, Schuylkill, and York Counties.
Commissioner Gallagher serves many civic organizations including the Schuylkill Symphony Orchestra Board of Directors, the Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center Patient Safety Committee, The Schuylkill Alliance for Health Care Coverage, Schuylkill Women in Crisis Advisory Board, the Schuylkill County Victim/Witness Policy Board, Schuylkill Community Action Board of Directors, the Friends of the Pottsville Free Public Library, the Schuylkill Health Auxiliary, the Community Advisory Board for the National Children’s Study, and the Schuylkill
Elder Abuse Prevention Alliance (SEAPA), of which she was a co-founder. Commissioner Gallagher is a member of St. Patrick Church, where she serves as a Eucharistic Minister.
The recipient of the 2007 Soroptimist International of Schuylkill County Woman of Distinction Award, the 2008 Pottsville Area School District Distinguished Alumna Award, and the 2009 Pottsville Business and Professional Women's Orchid Award, Commissioner Gallagher and her husband, Dr. James T. Gallagher, have been named the 2009 recipients of the Penn State Alumni Achievement Award. Commissioner Gallagher also served as Schuylkill County’s Honorary Chairperson of the 2009 American Cancer Society Daffodil Days Campaign.
A graduate of the Pennsylvania State University, Commissioner Gallagher is married to Dr. James T. Gallagher, Superintendent of Schools in the Pottsville Area School District. They have one son, Jim, who is a 2001 Princeton University graduate and a 2004 Georgetown University Law Center graduate. He currently is an associate attorney in the Washington, D.C. office of Hughes Hubbard and Reed.