Former Bensalem Superintendent Interviews for Neshaminy Post

If picked to be new superintendent of the Neshaminy School District, Dr. William Gretzula said he would hope to move the focus in the district from “labor contracts to learning.”

Gretzula, the finalist for the top position in the district, participated in an hour long public interview session Thursday evening at Maple Point Middle School.

The questions asked of Gretzula were sent in to the district via e-mail.

Moderating the session was Bucks County Intermediate Unit Executive Director Barry Galasso, who offered his services to the district free of charge, according to a district official. Galasso was formally head of the New Jersey Association of School Administrators.

Charles Alfonso, of Langhorne, voiced his displeasure with the session when Galasso ended the interview without opening the floor to public comment. Alfonso, who had prepared questions to ask of the candidate, called the public interview  “staged” and a “political farce.”

Galasso said the interview followed guidelines approved by the school board.

Gretzula said after the interview session that he felt it important to talk to Alfonso, and, if he became leader of the district, “transparency and collaboration” would be a top priority.

In his opening statement, Gretzula spoke of how he had spent nearly 10 years working at and in the Neshaminy School District before becoming assistant superintendent and later superintendent of the .

Gretzula said the school board asked him “fair questions” about and move into a consulting position with the district.

He said the decision was based on his mother’s battle with stage-3 cancer after that caused him to realize he need to spend more time with his two young children.

“I knew I need to be home at the time,” the candidate stated.

The Bensalem resident also said if the board gave him the job he would commit to the community and move into the Neshaminy School District.

“The success of the community rests on the success of the its school system,” Gretzula said.

The former english teacher said he reads the blogs and hears comments in which district residents talk about how the once highly-ranked schools have fallen into lower standards.

One of the projects at Bensalem Gretzula worked on was improving each school’s Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) rating. At Neshaminy, he wants to work with students, staff and district residents to .

Gretzula, who sees the superintendent position as the district’s “lead learner,”  and said he thinks every district employee should be doing what’s best for the students.

When asked about teacher accountability, Gretzula stated: “Accountability starts at the top.”

“I’d ensure that teachers would know what they’re supposed to do ... but at the same time they will be held accountable,” he said.

Gretzula said he thinks the teachers and administration should be collaborating and and supporting each other. He added that input from staff and community was key to the education process.

Galasso read a question asking about the NFT’s work-to-contract order.

He responded by stating he believed “80 to 90 percent” of the district’s teachers  went beyond what their contract said in order to best serve  students.

Several of the questions submitted by district residents asked about the .

The former classroom educator called “one of the most difficult weeks in the history of the district” and said he hoped to focus on academics and not labor contracts.

Neshaminy’s current superintendent, Louis Muenker, plans to retire at the end of the school year.

The superintendent selection committee initially had three other candidates, but they dropped out before the public interview portion of the selection process, Neshaminy School Board President Ritchie Webb said. 

Webb stated the board will decide on Muenker’s replacement in the next few weeks and encouraged residents to give the board their input.