Interim P’ville H.S. Principal Prepared for This Year’s Challenges

Dr. Daniel McCann didn’t consider his time away from education as retirement. The new Pleasantville High School principal instead thought of his year off more as a sabbatical.

After being an educator for more than 40 years and an administrator for over 30 years, McCann decided to call it quits as superintendent of the Hendrick Hudson School District after six years in 2012.

During the year away from full-time work, the 64-year-old read a wide genre of books, went trout fishing, skiied and played tennis. He traveled to Paris and Normandy, where he saw firsthand where the D-Day invasion during World War II took place. He visited multiple museums and renovated part of his house. He even had time for consultant work as well.

But after a year away, McCann is back in a one-year administrative position as interim principal of Pleasantville High School after a turbulent summer in which the district saw its former probationary principal, Dawn Bartz, resign.

Now it’s McCann who is in charge, preparing for a new year that started Monday in which he intends to push Pleasantville High School forward. With a background in science and math, and a love of athletics, McCann is ready to take on another challenge of leading a school and becoming part of a community that was so divided during the summer.

“I wanted to see what evolved,” McCann said of getting back into the education field. “I wanted to see what emerged, and if the right opportunity emerged than I wanted to pursue it.”

McCann, who becomes the fourth principal at the school in four years, said when he first heard of the opening, he was aware of the controversy that engulfed the community, but it didn’t deter him.

“Yeah, I knew there were challenges,” McCann said. “But every job I’ve had there’s been challenges.”

Challenges have dated back to a time when McCann was fresh out of college, when he said he helped at-risk young adults, some mixed up in gang life and others “one step away from jail.”

He wanted to change the world, and eventually saw education as a way to do that.

As a 26-year-old, McCann was asked to be assistant coordinator, then an assistant principal, and for short time, acting principal at a school in New Jersey. Eventually he moved to Westchester, securing a position in Scarsdale as a science teacher and staff developer.

After finishing his doctorate, McCann continued to ascend the ladder, becoming a principal at a Long Island elementary school. After that job, he has served in administrative positions at Pearl River, Bronxville and Rye City before taking over at Hendrick Hudson.

During his time in Rye many years ago, McCann first met Pleasantville Superintendent of Schools Mary Fox-Alter at BOCES meetings. Fox-Alter was impressed with his curriculum knowledge.

“He had an excellent reputation,” Fox-Alter said. “He came across as a well-versed administrator who was aware of how to move and motivate the district that he’s been in.”

That’s why Fox-Alter said she was delighted when McCann applied for the interim position, noting the education field “missed his expertise.”

During the Aug. 6 board of education meeting when McCann was appointed, Trustee Lou Conte said McCann’s answers during the interview process were inspiring.

When McCann arrived, he started talking about what he valued in education, Conte said. What struck Conte is when McCann said he didn’t want to just be the school’s “caretaker for a year.”

“That, I thought, spoke to work ethic and commitment to education.” Conte said. “That was good to hear. That really put me at ease because obviously in our situation we did not want run of the mill.”

As much as McCann enjoyed being a superintendent, he said he can’t wait to be around students in a full-time setting, something he couldn’t really do working in central administration. In his first couple of weeks, he met with faculty and visited the athletic fields to meet with the fall sports teams.

He intends to push the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education program forward and observe how officials in other districts integrate it into their curriculum.

“It’s bringing a plan forward that expands beyond clubs and activities and integrates more into existing instruction,” McCann said. “But I think it also develops some unique coursework.”

Despite the difficult summer for Pleasantville, all signs point to a high school — and a district — ready to move on. The last two board of education meetings have been much more subdued, and a Facebook group supporting the former embattled principal has been taken down.

And McCann is ready to begin a new era in Pleasantville, even if it’s just for the year.

“Being here, I’m closer to the education, which is exciting,” McCann said. “It’s not so much work as it is a passion.”