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William Penn SD says reorganization won’t cut pay as teachers and PLC staff urge more input
Summary
The district announced cuts to eight academic-interventionist posts and moved central-office secretaries into school roles while restoring an executive director for blended learning; teachers and union leaders raised transparency and program-stability concerns, especially for the PLC.
The William Penn School District announced a personnel reorganization Tuesday that will reduce academic interventionist positions from 16 to 8 and shift several central-office secretary roles into school-based jobs, while reinstating an executive director for blended learning and technology for the 2025–26 school year. District presenters emphasized that no one will be laid off or lose income as a result of the changes.
Tracy (district presenter) said the reductions reflect vacancies and budget methodology: "No one is losing their job, being laid off, or losing income," she said, adding that the least-senior interventionists will select classroom positions "in accordance with the teachers' collective bargaining agreement." She also said three central-office secretary positions were eliminated after a resignation and that two secretaries were moved into vacant school secretary roles at the same pay rate.
The district said the executive director of blended learning and technology position — last held by Dr. Mary Agnew and responsible for overseeing the PLC and technology — will be reinstated in 2025–26, and that an assistant-principal position tied to the PLC will be eliminated. "That person will move to another position in the district," the district said, reiterating that affected employees would remain employed at their existing rates.
Teachers and union leaders urged greater transparency and suggested the changes risk destabilizing the PLC, the district’s virtual/alternative program. "We cannot continue to have all this disruption in chaos, and expect to be successful," said Melinda Tax, a PLC teacher. Andrea Fink, president of the William Penn Education Association, said teachers learned late that openings were being recruited and asked the district to resend the registration link used to build interview panels.
Teachers described operational impacts from a lost school-based secretary, including unanswered parent calls and additional workload. One speaker said: "There's nobody answering the phone doing the secretary's job…Our program is being affected." Board members asked for a clearer budget breakdown showing how vacancies and reassignments affect central-office and school budgets; the district said the money for filled school secretary roles was already budgeted at the school level and therefore does not add new salary burdens.
Board members and staff encouraged continued conversation and invited PLC staff to follow up in the education committee. The district also offered to meet individually with administrators whose certification status might limit classroom reassignment and noted it follows the Pennsylvania School Code on demotions.
The board requested that a clearer, visual budget summary and a breakdown of the fiscal impact be added to a future agenda so members and the public can review details outside the meeting.
The meeting adjourned with the board urging staff and community to continue engagement at upcoming committee meetings.
