The Upper Darby School Board is considering waiving a rule which requires the superintendant to live within the district for Galli’s remaining year and a half.UPPER DARBY – In a letter to teachers and staff Upper Darby School District Superintendent Joseph Galli has announced his intention to retire at the end of the 2009 school year.
‘He’s given more notice than any superintendent I know of,” Assistant Superintendent Lou DeVlieger said on Monday. ‘He felt it was appropriate to announce his retirement because the house he’s currently living in will be going up for sale. There’s a possibility of a lawn sign, something of that nature going up, that would create a lot of controversy,” DeVlieger said.
Galli’s contract requires that he live within the district. He has contacted the school board to request an amendment to allow him to live outside the district until his retirement is effective.
Board President Judith Gentile telephoned school directors to make them aware of Galli’s request.
Christiane Parsons, an unsuccessful candidate for school board in last November’s election, contends Gentile took an informal telephone poll. ‘The process they used calling peopleis illegal,” Parsons said on Monday. ‘It’s kind of funny to me that he’s lived here for so long, been superintendent, now all of a sudden he wants to move.
If you really want to be superintendent, you believe in this district then you need to live in this district.” ‘My job as board president is to keep everyone informed of what’s going on in the district.
That’s no vote. That is absolutely no vote,” Gentile said of her calls to school directors. ‘I call whenever there’s something happening.
It’s not a poll vote. It’s nothing. It’s to let people see what’s happening so they’ll be ready when we discuss it at the closed session and if they need to get more information they can do that.
‘It was just Joe Galli letting me know that this is what he had in mind. This is what he would like to do.” ‘It appears he has the support to live outside the district for the last year,” DeVlieger said. ‘But it will not be official until an amendment to the contract is official.” The board is expected to consider his request at the Feb. 12 meeting.
