After a very long and hard-fought battle, I feel vindicated knowing that the jury saw through the school districts false allegations and found that I was the target of illegal retaliation, he said. . Scott said at the beginning of the meeting that Castagna was chosen because he had experience working directly as a superintendent in a district similar to Woodland Hills. I think we can change it, it can change," said Carter Lance, a Penn Hills junior. The first registered speaker was Annie Moon of Chalfant, a Woodland Hills alumni who had previously participated in a focus group about the district hosted by the AIU. Woodland Hills School Board Votes To Terminate Superintendent James Wednesday night's meeting got heated before the vote. ", Speakers after Woods agreed that many people do make mistakes and deserve second chances but felt that Castagna has already had the opportunity to learn from his mistakes and failed to live up to the task. Despite the efforts of concerned residents and an online petition that received over 350 signatures, the vote concluded with four against and five for Castagna. Woodland Hills hired Woods a year after Kevin Murray resigned as high school principal following several controversies involving the treatment of students that led to a federal lawsuit against the district. "The result of what some of us believe was a hasty and unwarranted action was a loss of public trust." The agreements were approved by the Woodland Hills School District Board of School Directors during their legislative meeting on January 18, 2023. However, with the redesign of the high school and a lot of our buildings are safer, theyre harder to get in if youre an outside person trying to do some bad stuff in a school. You can contact Patrick by email at pvarine@triblive.com or via Twitter . In the early 2000s, Woodland Hills was losing about 400 kids a year to charter schools. "We have said no thank you, and we are saying tonight, no thank you. In a 5-4 vote, the Pittsburgh Public Schools board voted Wednesday to use $27,000 in grant funds to cover costs of police training for four district security guards. Castagna was fired as superintendent of West Mifflin Area schools in March 2019 following two DUI arrests and accusations of neglect ofduties, incompetency, and immorality. "We're trying to . We have peer-to-peer [counseling], we have teacher-to-student [counseling], we have behavioral interventions, we have counseling, we have assistant principals, we have principals, we have myself. They questioned whether it was a good idea for someone who has been through alcohol intervention programs to own a bar and has pictures of himself on social media with containers of alcohol. The bar Castagna co-owns, Cosmo on Carson, was cited in 2020 for lack of face coverings, failure to physically distance customers, and serving alcohol without a meal. "We have made a commitment to provide a wide range of support systems to our students," Woodland Hills Superintendent Dr. Daniel Castagna said. Harris has come under fire recently for his handling of fights at the high school, including one involving as many as 50 or 60 students. "There are currently five board members who were not on the board when the decision was made to terminate Superintendent James Harris in December," was the opening comment made by board member Carlton Scott of Region 1 - Chalfant, Churchill, Wilkins, and Turtle Creek, which started off the meeting before registered speakers made their statements. "As a mom, it's important that my children have examples - have role models. Harris had been an administrator since 2018, and the school board did not give a reason for his firing. Unified. Select Accept to consent or Reject to decline non-essential cookies for this use. We still have our counselors, our behavioral interventionists and a great leadership staff in the building. He . This is not a decision that was taken lightly, but it is one that the board believes is necessary for the district to move forward. Parents are involved, its a $200 to $300 fine, which is silly when all I had to do was resolve it would be a handshake and, Hey, dont smack me anymore.. Parents have to feel welcome when they go into the schools, students have to feel welcome. 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The school district announced on May 25 that Castagna would officially be head of the district from May 26, 2022, to May 25, 2027. Through the course of the night, people stood up to plead with the board against hiring Castagna. She can be reached at sschneider@wesa.fm. Woodland Hills is a very special place, and I am proud to be a part of this family, Castagna said. Many of those at the meeting questioned why the district did not promote for the position from within, being that the district has two people in administrative roles, Dawn Golden and Dr. Jean Livingston, both of whom have their superintendent letters from the department of education.
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