MASD: 12 Candidates for Superintendent Post

Residents question hiring, salary practices

By Yousuf Lachhab Ibrahim
The Tube City Almanac
October 21, 2024
Posted in: McKeesport and Region News

The McKeesport Area School District has received 12 applications for the open position of superintendent, and is hoping to receive some more before the cut-off date on Oct. 31, officials said last week.

The hiring process began after the previous superintendent, Tia Wanzo, resigned amidst allegations of a failure to properly report a case of sexual contact between a 24-year-old security guard — Alexis Brown — and a 17-year-old student.

That case is separate from rumored allegations against an anonymous McKeesport Area teacher who was reportedly placed on administrative leave after being accused of sexual misconduct by a student. District officials have declined comment in that case.

At a sometimes contentious board meeting last week, McKeesport resident Bridgette Truss raised the issue of special education students. Two positions have been vacant since the beginning of the school year, she said, coordinator of special education and assistant coordinator of special education and accessibility.

“What happened to the positions before they were vacated?” Truss asked the board. “Were those positions eradicated?”

Board President Mark Holtzman Sr. said that the district is in the process of filling those jobs. “We also hired a special ed director.” When pressed on whether or not the positions were abolished, Holtzman said, “No.”

When asked why she thought the two special education positions were purposely abolished, Truss said she believed it had something to do with the hiring of Matthew Mols as assistant to the superintendent.

During the citizen’s comment portion of the meeting, resident Cynthia Baldwin told the board that Mols is being paid almost twice what other school districts pay.

“I have done some further research on the position of assistant to the superintendent,” Baldwin said, “And it looks like those salaries are $70,000 to $90,000. I understand we're paying $130,000.”

Baldwin also looked up salaries for the position of assistant superintendent, which is a different role from assistant to the superintendent, and found that the number hovers around $100,000.

Baldwin also quizzed the board on the decision to cancel a planned “school district listening session” in McKeesport’s Harrison Village the previous evening.

“My husband and I got out of the car and as we started to walk toward it, they were running back toward us and hollering, ‘Get in the car, get in the car. There's guns. We're canceling the session,’” Baldwin said. “The concern I have is we have children that are experiencing that on a fairly regular basis and not just in Harrison Village.”

The Rev. Crystal Little raised the issue of residents’ questions going unanswered by the board in previous meetings, as well as questions regarding the replacement of school police chief Brenda D. Sawyer, who was accused of misappropriating funds to cover gambling debts while working for the state Attorney General’s office.

“Was (Baldwin’s) job posted for others to be aware that the school district was hiring for that position?” Little asked. “Were interviews conducted for that position? And if so, how many people were interviewed and or considered for the position?”

In September, the board hired former Pennsylvania state trooper Raymond Andrekanic as acting police chief.

“We looked at our staff internally and externally and chose somebody that was familiar with the McKeesport area,” District Solicitor Gary Matta said. “It’s an acting role. A lot of people don't want to come into an acting role because that could change at some point.”

The position is an acting role, Matta said, because if Sawyer is acquitted and wants to return to her job, she would be entitled to seek reinstatement.

For these reasons, he said, he board saw no need to create a job listing for the position.

In other business:

Board Member Jason Pavlecic mentioned that the district has hired a public relations consultant who is working on InCommunity magazine and on social media to highlight more positive stories about the area.

The board voted to approve the contract between McKeesport Area School District and the McKeesport Educational Support Professionals Association, effective July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2027, pending the solicitor’s final review. The motion carried 8-0, with Board Member LaToya Wright absent.

The board approved the first reading of new policies covering unlawful harassment and sexual harassment by both students and employees; the use of facilities; and the performance of background checks.

The board approved a field trip for the Tiger Band, colorguard and chaperones to attend the Bands of America Competition in Newark, Del., on Oct. 19.

Also approved by 8-0 vote was an agreement with a staffing agency, Soliant, to provide consulting services to the district.

Yousuf Lachhab Ibrahim is a freelance writer from Pittsburgh and a recent Penn State University graduate. He won a Golden Quill award for his work at the Penn State Greater Allegheny Gazette.

Originally published October 21, 2024.

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