North Allegheny School Board approves multiple personnel changes at special meeting

The North Allegheny School Board approved a slew of top personnel changes at a special meeting Nov. 29 amid calls by some community members that the board should delay the vote until next month.

“No one should be voting on this tonight. No one should be voting at this meeting,” said resident Marcia Caliendo, suggesting that the personnel changes could be approved at the next board meeting in December and a special meeting was unnecessary.

The board accepted the resignation of high school Principal Natasha Dirda effective Dec. 20, and named Matthew Buchak as the new high school principal.

Buchak, most recently assistant principal at Marshall Middle School, will move to his new position effective Jan. 1, at an annual salary of $139,700.

“I’m very humbled and excited for this next chapter,” Buchak said.

NA Superintendent Brendan Hyland said that his former district at Plum he had tried to “steal” Buchak to be a principal there.

“This guy has been a principal-in-the-making for well over a decade,” Hyland said. “He has so many things to offer. It’s now his time to be a mentor for someone else.”

Dirda will become high school principal at South Fayette School District, effective in January, according to the school district’s website.

David E. Deramo, principal at Ingomar Middle School since 2018, will become assistant superintendent of secondary education at NA, effective Jan. 1, for a term of five years through Dec. 31, 2028, at a salary of $150,000.

“I’m extremely proud and honored by this opportunity,” Deramo said.

Nancy Bowman will replace Deramo as principal of Ingomar Middle School, effective Jan. 1, at an annual salary of $130,000. Bowman has been NA’s coordinator of curriculum and instruction for grades six to 12 since May 2022.

She said she is excited to be working directly with the middle school, parents and students.

The board unanimously approved the personnel changes, however school board members Libby Blackburn, Marcie Crow and Michael Weniger all abstained from approving Larry Butterini as an educational consultant.

Blackburn, who is board president, said concerns had been raised about a potential conflict of interest in the Butterini vote. She said there had been no inappropriate actions by board members, however to avoid the “mere perception of conflict of interest, she, Crow and Weniger would abstain.

Board member Elizabeth Warner said she felt the educational consultant position was unnecessary.

Board director Richard McClure said the board had intended to retain former Acting Superintendent Patrick O’Toole to serve as an educational consultant when Melissa Friez was transitioning to NA’s superintendent, but O’Toole later resigned.

Butterini was at North Allegheny High School for 20 years. He returned to NA from retirement in May to serve as acting superintendent after Friez left to become superintendent at the Mt. Lebanon School District.

Former NA school board director Kevin Mahler was among several community members who stated that a special voting meeting was unnecessary.

“I spent a decade trying to get the board to operate responsibly,” said Mahler, adding that the board should table the vote.

“NA will not continue to be a flagship district just because it’s NA,” Mahler said.

School board directors Elizabeth Warner, Leslie Britton Dozier and Paige Hardy stated that they did not feel the special meeting was warranted. Regardless, they stated that the candidates were qualified, and their votes wouldn’t change by the December meeting.

Blackburn said the board held a similar type of emergency voting meeting when Dirda was hired as high school principal and when Friez was hired as superintendent.

The resignation of Joseph Scuillo as NA’s assistant superintendent of secondary education had been accepted by the school board on Nov. 15.

He has been hired by the Mt. Lebanon School District to serve as assistant superintendent of elementary education.