Neshaminy Schools Superintendent Placed On Administrative Leave

LANGHORNE, PA —The Neshaminy School Board has placed Schools Superintendent Rob McGee on leave and has named a substitute superintendent.

At Tuesday night's meeting, the school board approved agenda items that placed McGee on an administrative leave of absence, effective last Friday.

Jason Bowman, the district's director of secondary education, was appointed as substitute superintendent, which also was effective Friday.

McGee and Bowman were not mentioned by the board during the half-hour meeting. The moves came in agenda items 3.02 and 3.03, but the board did not discuss the items.

Chris Stanley, the district's community relations coordinator, did not return calls or an email Wednesday for comment or whether the district would issue a statement.

"I have no comment," School board member Cyndie Bowman told Patch Wednesday morning.

When it came time for the superintendent's report at the start of Tuesday night's Neshaminy School Board meeting, there was no superintendent.

After a 22-minute delay, the school board started its meeting and when the superintendent's report came up, Board President Tina Hollenbach said she had a "couple of comments" that were left for her. She then went on to discuss the artwork by children around the meeting room.

The board then approved several leaves of absence but never discussed who they were for nor mentioned McGee. Hollenbach said at the start of the meeting that the board met in executive session, but no statement was made about McGee.

Agenda Item 3.02, presented by Board Vice President Paul C. Saraullo placed McGee on leave of absence, effective Feb. 24.

Agenda item 3.03 appointed Bowman as substitute superintendent, effective Feb. 24.

McGee did not respond to a message left by Patch.

McGee, a Neshaminy schools graduate and 35-year veteran of the school district, took over as head of the Neshaminy School District on July 1, 2020.

He replaced Superintendent Joseph Jones III, who left at the end of his contract to return to the classroom as a math teacher in the Philadelphia School District.

Before becoming superintendent, McGee had served as Neshaminy's director of secondary education.

McGee's five-year contract will pay $196,000 per year. His contract runs through 2025.

The state Auditor General asserted earlier this year that Neshaminy was among 12 school districts that participated in a "shell game" to raise property taxes.

Neshaminy's administration and school board accepted the auditor's Jan. 25 performance audit report and said it would implement the recommendations.