Deal reached on superintendent’s departure at Crestwood, board president says

WRIGHT TWP. — Crestwood Superintendent Joseph Gorham has reached a deal with the district and will be leaving the job, with the school board expected to vote on the deal at Thursday’s meeting, Board President Bill Jones confirmed.

He added that a similar arrangement is being worked out with Chief of Operations Chris Gegaris and could also be up for a vote Thursday.

Gorham and Gegaris were suspended with pay following a discovery by the state Auditor General’s office that the district did not have clearances on file for all the bus drivers. Transportation was contracted to Rinehimer Bus Lines, and it is up to the company to make sure drivers have all clearances, but the district must have copies of the paperwork. The problem resulted in cancellation of two days of school before clearances for enough drivers were on file. Even then there was a two-hour delay when school resumed because teachers had to accompany some bus drivers who still lacked clearances.

The deal with Gorham “is finalized,” Jones said. “He did have an attorney, and he finalized it with our attorney.” But he predicted there may be a larger administrative shakeup and some reprimands for others who held some blame for the mix-up.

“What we learned in the investigation is that a lot of things were piecemealed. We had four different people doing one job, things weren’t being finished how they should have been finished.” Part of the problem, Jones added, was that one person might assume another person had done the job in question when it wasn’t completed.

While the investigation focused first on Gorham and Gegaris, “we also found some other things with personnel that were red flags,” Jones said. “I don’t see anyone losing their job, but expect there will be reprimands.” He added that Assistant Superintendent Joseph Rasmus will continue to run the district until the board conducts a search and selects a new superintendent.

Jones said he cannot reveal any details of the agreement with Gorham because it has not been approved by the board.

Crestwood Superintendent Joseph Gorham shakes hands with a well-wisher during a small reception when he was new to the job in 2016. Gorham has reached a deal with the district and will be leaving, with the board expected to vote on the pact at Thursday’s meeting.

https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/web1_Crestwood_1-cmyk-2.jpgCrestwood Superintendent Joseph Gorham shakes hands with a well-wisher during a small reception when he was new to the job in 2016. Gorham has reached a deal with the district and will be leaving, with the board expected to vote on the pact at Thursday’s meeting. Times Leader file photo