West Mifflin School Board Addresses Concerns From Teachers And Parents About Superintendent

By: Erika Stanish/KDKA-TV

WEST MIFFLIN, Pa. (KDKA) -- West Mifflin Area School District parents and teachers are pushing for change in the district's administration.

The united push comes after the teachers union voted last week that it had "no confidence" in Superintendent Jeff Soles.

During a school board meeting on Thursday night, parents and teachers packed into the middle school auditorium dressed in blue to show support for their teachers. Several stood in front of the school board during the public comment session to express their frustrations.

"Our jobs are a passion and that's our profession, but we expect to be supported and feel supported by administration," former teacher Fred Danchenko said.

"When the leadership changed last year, the faculty never heard from Mr. Soles. No communication," former teacher Rebecca Cibulka said.

Cibulka said she went into early retirement, and she blames Soles for not valuing her or other teachers.

"I miss my colleagues, I miss the students. But I do not miss the way I felt my last year teaching in this district," Cibulka said.

Soles never looked up or made eye contact with those speaking during public comment.

"Soles is not providing holistic leadership ... sadly, his focus is on numbers, not educating our children," Danchenko said.

Parents, even a student, told the board that they want Soles out and former West Mifflin Superintendent Dan Castagna back in charge. Castagna was fired in 2019 after two DUI arrests. He's currently the acting superintendent for the Woodland Hills School District.

"I stand with the teachers and Castagna," a student said.

Once public comment ended, board members went into a brief executive session. Someone in the auditorium could be heard yelling, "Make the right decision," as board members walked out of the room.

Board members later voted in favor to create a special committee that will be made up of key district and community stakeholders to address any challenges within the district.

"The board wants to recognize concerns brought forward by West Mifflin Confederation of Teachers Union leadership. It's our desire to work collaboratively with the union, district and families … to address matters where appropriate," a school board member said. "We feel this is a great opportunity to further deepen relationships across the district, develop mutually agreeable approaches and put our students first in all that we do."

The special committee will be made over the next several months, according to the board, and will offer feedback and insights on challenges within the district. The board said the committee will then report and prioritize a list of opportunities to the relevant, responsible parties for consideration, implementation and ongoing monitoring.