John Reinhart Becomes New Easton Superintendent

The Easton Area School District's new superintendent is a familiar face to anyone who's followed local school news recently.

John Reinhart, who's been serving as the district's interim superintendent for the past two months, will take on that job full time. 

The school board voted Tuesday night to approve Reinhart's hiring. The vote was 8-0—board member Pat Vulcano was on vacation—with board members Frank Pintabone and Robert Moskaitis attending by phone. Moskaitis apologized for not being able to vote in person.

“This is a very, very fine day for the district. It was an honor to vote for someone of such a fine caliber," he said.

Reinhart will become the full-time superintendent starting Oct. 1. His contact runs until June 30, 2017.

"I’d like to thank the board for their vote of confidence," said Reinhart, a former Bangor Area School District superintendent and one-time Easton teacher. "I feel like a very fortunate person to join the Easton team."

Reinhart was named interim superintendent in July, after two candidates to replace former superintendent Susan McGinley dropped out. 

Interviewed after the meeting, Reinhart said he hadn't planned on returning to the education field full-time. But he said he felt welcomed by the Easton school community, and was beginning to change his mind about retiring when he was approached at the start of the school year.

"The interim is a blessing and a curse," Reinhart said. 

On one hand, you can make changes and leave. On the other hand, there are limits to how many changes you can make.

Reinhart became superintendnent in Bangor in 1999 after a stint as both a grade school and high school principal, and retired from education in 2010