State news. (Credit: Flickr/Creative Commons)
The firing of a Central Bucks School District administrator for failing to quickly report suspected abuse of students in an autistic support classroom at Jamison Elementary School was upheld by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
Alyssa Wright, the district’s former director of pupil services, was fired by Central Bucks last year amid a scandal over the district’s response to abuse allegations, along with former Superintendent Steven Yanni, the Jamison Elementary principal; a teacher; and an educational assistant.
Wright reportedly learned about the students’ treatment on Nov. 14, 2024, and met with administrators the next day, but did not contact ChildLine, the state’s hotline for reporting child abuse, according to Education Secretary Carrie Rowe.
The district’s then-superintendent, Yanni, contacted ChildLine six days later, but Rowe said every school employee has an independent obligation to report suspected abuse, in a March 30 order upholding Wright’s firing.
Wright’s failure to report suspected child abuse was a violation of the state’s Child Protective Services Law, namely restraints of students. Wright said she was a scapegoat in the abuse scandal, referring to the January 2025 school board meeting, when then-school board member Jim Pepper (R) made a whistleblower’s allegations public.
A watchdog group report found students in the classroom were illegally restrained, denied water and physically punished. The group said Yanni left out relevant information in his report to ChildLine, and police relied on Yanni’s assertion that there was no evidence of abuse when they closed their investigation.
Yanni, who is now the CEO of Northwood Academy Charter School in Philadelphia, has appealed his termination saying he acted based on information given to him by other district officials. Yanni and the Jamison principal who was fired, Dave Heineman, placed blame on Wright during the termination hearings.
In the federal lawsuit filed in September, Wright who worked for Central Bucks for four years, said she was punished for raising concerns about the district’s investigation into the alleged abuse and accused the school board of fabricating a reason to fire her.
The state’s child abuse reporting requirements apply to people with a “high level” of knowledge of suspected abuse, Wright said in her ongoing lawsuit. As Central Bucks’ director of pupil services, Wright had a high level of professional responsibility and she was properly dismissed, Rowe said.
