web1_Lydia_Lawson_action.jpg

College Corner: Holy Redeemer’s Lawson caps off record season for Elizabethtown soccer

web1_SERVPRO_CASA.jpg

SERVPRO donates to CASA of Luzerne County

<p>WRIGHT TWP. &#8212; Crestwood School District Superintendent Joseph Gorham and Chief of District Operations Christopher Gegaris were put on paid leave Tuesday afternoon, pending the outcome of an investigation into errors regarding bus driver clearances, Gorham confirmed.</p><p>Gorham said the leave began before 4 p.m., and said there is no set limit on how long the leave will last. He said he could not comment on the investigation while it is still in progress.</p><p>Solicitor Jack Dean said he could not comment on any personnel actions or on the investigation, which was prompted by the state auditor general&#8217;s office discovering the district did not have required clearances on file for many bus drivers. The district contracted with Rinehimer Bus Lines, and the company was responsible for getting clearances, but the district is required to have copies of all clearances on file. The auditors discovered the clearances were not on file.</p><p>That led to two days of school closure last week, until Rinehimer provided clearances for 25 of the drivers. The district re-opened Friday, though at the time Dean said the at least six teachers had to ride with drivers who lacked clearances. The need to pick up those teachers before picking up students caused a two-hour delay Friday.</p><p>Gorham was appointed superintendent in April of 2016, coming from his position as superintendent at Carbondale School District.</p><p>The School Board made headlines prior to that when it initially appointed Peg Foster in November of 2015 to the post to replace retiring Dave McLaughlin-Smith, even though Foster&#8217;s required &#8220;letter of eligibility&#8221; from the state was still pending at the time (as some who voted for her had predicted, she did get it later). Foster was appointed shortly before an election that saw a change in the board membership, and after the new members were sworn in the board rescinded her appointment and made Brian Waite acting superintendent in January, 2016 until Gorham was given the post.</p><p>According to state records, last year Gorham&#8217;s salary was $115,000, while Gegaris was paid $105,643. </p><style>
.neFileBlock {
	margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
	margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
	border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
	padding-bottom: 5px;
	padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
	font-size: 85%;
}
</style>
<div class='neFileBlock'>
<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/web1_Gegaris-christopher-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Gegaris </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/web1_Gegaris-christopher-2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Gegaris </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/web1_new_super3_faa-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Gorham  </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/web1_new_super3_faa-2.jpg</photo1><caption1>Gorham  </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Superintendent, chief of district operations sidelined over bus flap</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mark Guydish</p><p>mguydish@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Superintendent, chief of district operations at Crestwood put on paid leave pending bus investigation