Pennsylvania school district names new leader after hazing investigation leads to multiple arrests
Cheltenham School District has tapped a former superintendent to return to the top job as leaders reckon with the aftermath of a hazing scandal that led to multiple arrests.
The board of school directors on Tuesday unanimously voted to name Chris McGinley the Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, school district's interim superintendent for the 2026-27 school year. McGinley previously worked in the district as assistant superintendent from 1999 to 2003 and superintendent from 2003 to 2006.
McGinley's appointment comes at a difficult time for the school system.
Former Superintendent Brian Scriven resigned earlier this month after 10 people — four coaches and six players — were charged in connection with two assaults in the football locker room.
The coaches — head coach Terence Tolbert, associate head coach Darian "DJ" McFadden, assistant coach Benjamin Johnson III, and volunteer coach Ralph Burnley — are charged with endangering the welfare of a child and conspiracy to do so for trying to cover up the assault, Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele said.
Two football players who were 18 years old at the time of the assaults — Isaiah Simpson and Josiah Peeler — are also facing charges, along with four others who are going through juvenile court.
A grand jury investigating the incidents found that multiple players were in the locker room both times a 15-year-old player was assaulted. When the player told Burnley about one of the attacks, the coaches told him not to tell his mother, according to the grand jury's report.
At an earlier school board meeting, parents pressed officials about hiring practices and background checks.
Cheltenham has not played a full season of football since 2024. The district canceled the remainder of the 2025 season and also canceled the entire 2026 football season because of the investigation. It is still expected to field a ninth-grade team this season.
Board president Leah Mulhearn said at that meeting, "Football will not return until we address this, no matter how long it takes."
McGinley began his career in the School District of Philadelphia as a special education teacher and then as a principal and administrator. More recently, he was a professor and department chair at the Temple University College of Education and Human Development, according to the school district.
"At a time when the district is focused on rebuilding public trust and ensuring the safety of all students at all district schools, we believe that Dr. McGinley is uniquely qualified to lead our schools during the upcoming school year," Mulhearn said in a statement about his appointment.
