Southampton School Officials Refuse To Explain Replacement Of Administrator, Who Is Still Being Paid

More than a week after appointing an interim director of pupil personnel services—essentially replacing Denise Merchant, the administrator who holds the position—Southampton School District officials still refuse to comment about Ms. Merchant’s status, or on what prompted the move.

They do confirm one thing: Ms. Merchant is still being paid her regular salary, even while someone else is being paid to do the job.

On Tuesday, Interim Superintendent Dr. Nicholas Dyno again declined to say why the School Board voted to appoint Dr. Harmon Cohen, a former special education administrator in Southampton who had retired several years ago, as the interim director of pupil personnel services. Dr. Dyno said the district could not talk about personnel matters.

“I still am not allowed to comment,” he said.

Dr. Dyno did say, though, that Ms. Merchant—who was escorted out of the district administrative building on Friday afternoon, May 20, and has not been at work in the days following the incident—is still receiving pay, because she is an administrator. She makes $154,429 annually, according to the district, although the public information website www.seethroughny.net states that her salary in 2015 was $159,105. She has held the post since August 30, 2010, and received tenure in 2013.

Dr. Cohen will be paid $850 daily and works three eight-hour days per week.

District officials have remained mum about the circumstances leading up to, and after, the meeting held last Tuesday night, May 24, when Dr. Cohen was hired. At the same meeting, the School Board also voted to hire the Garden City-based firm Jaspan Schlesinger LLP to “provide attorney services to the district, as presented,” Dr. Dyno read from a prepared statement.

The firm is the same agency that conducted an investigation into former Superintendent Dr. Scott Farina earlier this year, one that led to his resignation in April, and sources have confirmed that Ms. Merchant is the target of investigators this time around.

Sources say the firm will look into allegations that a teacher in the district has made against Ms. Merchant, although what those allegations are is still not known. The source said the allegations were presented to the School Board in an executive session on Tuesday, May 17.