Superintendent candidate for Pittsburgh-area school district pulls name after parents push back
CHARTIERS VALLEY, Pa. (KDKA) — A candidate for superintendent of the Chartiers Valley School District has pulled his name out of the running for the position.
The board planned to appoint Philip Martell as the new superintendent at a meeting on Tuesday night, but he told KDKA-TV that he pulled his name for consideration. Martell is currently the superintendent of the River Valley School District in Blairsville. He told KDKA-TV that he felt the process got political.
"I've dealt with these accusations and things over the years, and that really didn't factor in," he said. "I just don't want to be involved. It's very hard to govern if you come in with a slate already developed."
"What I don't need is to get involved with partisan and union politics in a district," he added.
Martell said he texted the school board president expressing his desire to withdraw.
"I just said this is not worth the expense of my reputation that we have built at River Valley and all the aggravation," Martell said.
When the solicitor announced the news at Tuesday's meeting, people applauded.
"We don't have any ill will towards him," parent Emily Marko said. "He just was not a good fit for this district."
The move comes after parents in the district raised concerns about the hiring of Martell. One of the concerns, according to parents, is that he has never been a teacher.
"It's literally all been on the finance side. They are just out of touch and not understanding," a concerned parent said on Tuesday afternoon.
While working for the West Mifflin Area School District, there was an investigation by the Allegheny County District Attorney's Office surrounding Martell into filing the same expense report multiple times. The investigation was later dropped when the money was paid back.
"Every decision that they are making affects the students and the staff negatively," a concerned former employee told KDKA-TV on Tuesday afternoon.
Former Fayette County District Attorney Richard Bower told KDKA-TV on Tuesday that Martell resigned as superintendent in Connellsville in 2017 after he was caught spending district money on political campaign signs.
The meeting's agenda for Tuesday said Martell's contract would have been for five years, with an annual salary of $204,000.
School board member Ed Brosky defended Martell, saying he was the best candidate for the job.
"There could be all kinds of allegations, but what I looked at is what he could have done for our school district because we are in dire straights on many fronts that people are just not admitting to," Brosky said.
The district has had an interim superintendent since mid-March. A spokesperson says she'll keep doing that job while this process starts all over and a new superintendent is hired.