Faculty departures spark hiring spurt at Greensburg Salem; principal joins district

Greensburg Salem School Board completed a raft of faculty hirings this week and advertised for additional positions — as the panel accepted the retirements of two teachers and the resignations of four others, with the start of school just weeks away.

The board also filled an administrative vacancy at the middle school and approved a $4,000 salary increase for district Superintendent Ken Bissell.

The raise to $150,000 the board approved for Bissell doubled the minimum annual pay hike he was slated to receive under the terms of his four-year contract, which extends through June 2026.

Bissell indicated he is planning to contribute a portion of the pay hike to the Greensburg Salem Education Foundation, which raises funds to enhance learning, by helping to support classroom and school initiatives.

“I feel like our kids need something,” Bissell said, indicating the foundation is “a good place for me to give back.”

Greensburg Salem hired Ray Francis as the new middle school associate principal at a salary of $84,500. He is taking over a position that came open in July — after David Redinger was promoted to head principal at the middle school and the building’s former principal, Adam Jones, moved to the high school, as co-principal with David Zilli.

Francis gained experience as an educator in Louisiana and Texas, serving as a math teacher, assistant principal and principal. He then moved to Pennsylvania, where he has worked for the Pittsburgh-based Propel charter schools.

“We saw an immediate fit with our staff and our students,” Bissell said of Francis. “He’s bringing a lot of energy.”

The board hired K-12 certified music teacher Laura Dees, replacing Melanie Callas, who recently retired. Also retiring, effective this week, were sixth-grade language arts teacher Gloria Rehak and Camile Nemanic, a math specialist at Hutchinson Elementary.

“They’re going to be missed by all of us,” Bissell said of the retirees. “The kids came first, that was the big thing with all of them.”

The school board also accepted the resignations of high school math teacher Melissa Gibbon, high school learning support teacher Michael Rhea, elementary teacher Molly Sossong and elementary learning support teacher Mary Jo Holtzer.

In addition to Dees, the board hired: high school math instructor Scott Shirey; Tyler Brinton, a business, computer and information technology teacher; two elementary teachers; a full-time elementary substitute teacher; a K-12 school counselor; six K-12 special education teachers; and a full-time substitute special education teacher.

Bissell acknowledged the staff turnovers were “more than usual” at this time of year.

“There were resignations for various reasons,” he said. “We’ve had employees who have gotten administrative positions in other districts, and we’ve had other employees who have moved closer to their homes.”

Bissell said the district so far has received plenty of applications for the faculty positions it needed to fill. The greater challenge, he said, has been finding time to schedule interviews with hopefuls during the lead-up to students returning to class, on Aug. 30.

The board this week authorized advertising for several positions it still needs to fill: one math teacher and one language arts teacher for grades 7-12; one elementary teacher; one learning support teacher and two special education teachers for grades K-12.

“Our concern is with the turnover across the state,” Bissell said about filling remaining vacancies. “How many (districts) are going to have to hold their staff before they move on to their new positions? That could be a concern.”

Until replacements are hired, Bissell said, the district will look to fill open teaching slots temporarily with substitute instructors. While a number of area districts have been challenged to find sufficient substitutes in recent years, Bissell said it has not been a problem at Greensburg Salem.

The district also is looking to fill some supplemental positions, including head varsity boys’ basketball coach, a job that pays $10,616. Mark Zahorchak, who has led the hoops coaching staff for four years, has resigned from that athletic role. But he will continue as a member of the faculty, teaching law and economics courses at the high school.

Greensburg Salem is also looking to replace Rhea as assistant middle school track coach, a position that pays $2,753.