Greater Johnstown School District shuffles administrators

Jun. 30—Several Greater Johnstown School District administrators were shifted into different leadership roles on Wednesday at a special board meeting.

Officials said the moves were made to help the students.

"We're thinking if we shuffle some people around, make some new moves, maybe we can improve some things," board member Randy Romesburg said. "That's the reason for those moves."

Michael Dadey, previously Greater Johnstown High School's principal, was made the assistant to the district's superintendent. He will retain his duties as safety coordinator and vocational director.

William Cacciotti, previously the assistant principal at Greater Johnstown Middle School, was reassigned as the high school principal to fill the vacancy left by Dadey's move.

Kurt Hoffman, previously the assistant principal at the high school, became the Greater Johnstown Elementary School principal.

Douglas Henry, who had been the elementary school principal, was named the principal of Park Avenue School — the former St. Patrick's School in Johnstown's Moxham section, which will house the district's alternative education program next year.

Board members Missy Spaugy and Edwin Mikesic voted against moving Hoffman to the elementary school, but the motion still passed. Those were the sole votes against any of the personnel adjustments; all others passed with no opposition.

The assistant principal jobs at the high school and the elementary school are now vacant and will be advertised if necessary.

Superintendent Amy Arcurio said after the meeting that the board reorganized these roles to better serve the students.

"We are constantly looking at options and making decisions that could potentially set us up for success," she said. "Last year we had quite the challenge of student behavior, and so the board has ... worked incredibly hard to look at any potential options that set us up at the beginning of this school year ... to respond better to students' behaviors."

Community member John DeBartola criticized the shuffling of administrators during his public comment. He questioned why the board made the moves instead of keeping all positions the same and hiring from outside the district for leadership of Park Avenue School.

DeBartola also inquired whether any of the reassignments qualified as nepotism — board member Thomas Dadey is related to Michael Dadey, but Thomas Dadey abstained from the motions relevant to Michael Dadey, citing family as his reason.

Eugene Pentz, board president, said during his report that there are a lot of improvements coming to Greater Johnstown in the new year, including the shuffled leadership.

Another enhancement he noted was the hiring of GardaWorld as the district's security provider, which was approved at Wednesday's meeting. Pentz touted the company's experience and international standing.

"I think next year, school is going to be the safest place to be," he said.

The district signed a three-year deal with GardaWorld, beginning in the 2022-23 school year, and will pay security officials about $24 per hour.

Another adjustment for the new term will be a stricter cellphone policy for learners. That item passed its second reading with the board and will be included in the next student handbook.

Arcurio said the change will allow students to be more focused on education and not on social media. Students will still allowed to bring their phones to school and have them on the bus, but they won't be permitted to use them in the classroom.

"Because of the newness of social media and technology, they're just not mature enough to know when it's appropriate to engage on your cellphone and disconnect from the world in front of you and not," Arcurio said. "We want them to focus on what we are responsible to provide, and that's a quality education."

School officials have stated that, due to COVID-19 pandemic funding, the district is now one-to-one with technology, meaning that every student now has access to a district-issued device — so if students need to access the internet, they can do so via their school-issued devices.

Additional parameters and disciplinary information will be listed in the student handbook.

The board also approved the final operating budget for the 2022-23 school year with no tax increase. Revenues are projected to be $72.2 million and expenditures are estimated at $74.1 million. Roughly $1.9 million of the fund balance will be used to balance the budget.