Plum's new superintendent tells parents he will 'work to earn their trust'

North Allegheny Intermediate Principal Brendan Hyland said he plans to earn the trust of parents and residents of Plum as the school district's next superintendent.

“I am going to work my hardest to build bridges,” Hyland said in an emailed response. “I think this community needs to heal, because it has been through too much.”

Hyland was referencing the conviction and imprisonment of three teachers last year for having sex with students, as well as financial settlements the district paid to its high school principal and superintendent whose resignations were connected to the scandal.

He called Plum “an untapped gold mine in need of leadership” and said “it is where I want to be.”

Hyland, whose start date is pending release from the job he has had for 11 years at North Allegheny, will come to Plum without full support from the school board or district residents. He was hired Tuesday by a vote of 6-2-1 at a special meeting where several residents, sometimes shouting, pleaded with the board to reopen the job search rather than stick with Hyland.

Hyland was the lone finalist after another top candidate asked to be dropped from consideration. The district received 21 applicants in its monthlong job search that was done without public input. School Director Angela Anderson abstained from the vote to hire Hyland because she still had unanswered questions about the candidate.

Directors Richard Zucco and Jim Rogers dissented.

“I do not believe this is the best decision, nor do I think it's in the best interest of our district and our community,” Zucco said. “I thought we needed somebody with more experience and who has the leadership we need to pull everybody together. I didn't want for any reason to add more controversy to our school district. We just went through that.”

Sixteen of about 55 in the audience addressed the board during the meeting, citing concerns about Hyland's lack of experience as a superintendent, his connection to Plum school board member Scott Kolar, who works at the same North Allegheny school as a junior ROTC instructor, and that he was mentioned in a federal lawsuit the district settled related to sexual harassment of a student.

Hyland, who was not named a defendant in the lawsuit, was accused of not doing enough to stop the bullying and harassment of a student by other students. A charge similar to that was lodged against the Plum superintendent and other administrators during the district sex scandal.

“Why not take more time to find a candidate with more experience and less legal baggage?” parent Robyn Tongel said before the vote. “I know there are other candidates. If you make this hasty decision, it will be your legacy.”

The North Allegheny student, identified only by initials in the lawsuit, said incidents began in 2009 when she was a freshman and escalated, even after they were reported to Hyland.

According to the lawsuit: The girl received threatening texts from a student and was physically assaulted on multiple occasions; she was harassed at school and her job; she accused members of the football team of groping her and repeatedly making obscene gestures to her.

The lawsuit contends Hyland, who was also a football coach at the school, and other staffers were notified of each incident but took little action against the alleged perpetrators. North Allegheny paid for the student to transfer to another district for a year. When she returned, the harassment continued, the lawsuit said.

Most of the allegations in the lawsuit were dismissed; one was settled out of court through the district's insurance company, Plum solicitor Bruce Dice said.

Hyland acknowledged the concerns of parents who cited the lawsuit as a reason he should not be superintendent, but said he was not allowed to comment about the case.

“I am going to work to earn their trust. I would say they are not fully informed because they are not permitted to know all the facts,” Hyland said. “As I told the board in multiple rounds of the interview process, I am not running from something — I am running toward building something great.”

North Allegheny officials refused to comment on the lawsuit or Hyland's tenure in the district.

Hyland was given a 5-year contract with a starting salary of $155,000 and 2.5 percent raises each succeeding year. North Allegheny did not immediately respond to a Right to Know request for his current salary, but Hyland earned $130,179 in the 2015-16 school year, according to the latest available figures at openpagov.com.

Hyland has a bachelor's degree in secondary education and state administrative certification from the University of Pittsburgh. He earned a doctorate in administration and leadership, along with a superintendent letter of eligibility, from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He worked as a principal for five years in the Mt. Lebanon School District before being hired by North Allegheny.

“I think you've got to give him a chance,” Dice said. “If it doesn't pan out, this board's responsible enough. They'll take care of that matter, if that's the case. But he has excellent qualifications.”

Michael DiVittorio is a Tribune-Review staff writer.