A divided Southern Lehigh School Board approved separation agreements with Superintendent Michael Mahon at a special board meeting Tuesday night, ending his five-month stretch of paid administrative leave and offering a payout that included $110,000 to settle “mutual claims against each other that could lead to litigation” and another $135,000 in remaining salary and vacation days.
Mahon is the former superintendent of the Abington Heights School District.
The separation agreement, which was approved in a 5-4 vote, also upholds a contract amendment approved in November 2023 that provides health care to Mahon until the age of 65. He is 57.
Board President Stephen Maund and members Nicole King, Mary Joy Reinartz, Melissa Torba and Christopher Wayock voted for the agreement. Eric Boyer, Emily Gehman, Timothy Kearney and Candi Kruse voted against it.
The release of claims also includes $25,000 in attorneys’ fees for Mahon’s lawyers and states that all disciplinary or investigatory documents will be removed from Mahon’s personnel file.
During public comment at the conclusion of the meeting, Mahon said he has “nothing but gratitude as I leave this place,” and said it was not his idea to resign — rather, he said he had hoped to publicly answer “profoundly unfair allegations” that had been made against him.
The board has confronted several sets of concerns related to Mahon’s performance, including an employee’s complaints of discrimination, hostile work environment and retaliation, and the glitch-filled rollout of a student information system.
In a statement issued Tuesday morning, ahead of the board meeting, Mahon and the school board stated that he “leaves with the Board’s unequivocal affirmation of his performance, integrity, and professional conduct.”
However, at the board meeting, Boyer vehemently disagreed with the statement in the news release, saying “that letter does not unanimously reflect opinions” and repeatedly objecting to its posting before board discussion and the vote.
Reinartz thanked Mahon for his service and said he restored reading programs, built curriculum and invested in facilities.
“He’s made a significant difference in K-3 education, which was nonexistent prior to his tenure,” she said, drawing laughs from the audience.
An employment reference and letter of recommendation is included in the separation agreement. The letter credits Mahon with moving the district from structural deficits to surpluses, praises a literacy initiative and notes the expansion of dual enrollment offerings.
The wording of the letter of recommendation drew dissent from some board members.
“It looked like a resume of greatest hits, and, if that was the case, we wouldn’t be looking for separation,” Kearney said.
The news release acknowledges that the district “undertook an external review of certain employment matters” and states “that review affirmed Dr. Mahon’s professional judgment and conduct.”
The letter of recommendation given to Mahon states, “Following a comprehensive investigation conducted by independent legal counsel, all allegations were determined to be unfounded, and Dr. Mahon was fully cleared of any wrongdoing.”
Documents outlining an employee’s complaints were provided to The Morning Call on condition of anonymity. In the documents, Ethan Ake-Little, the district’s director of human resources, who is Indian American and married to a same-sex partner, alleges discrimination on the grounds of race/ethnicity and sexual orientation and claims Mahon unfairly targeted him with increasingly aggressive disciplinary action.
An investigation by an attorney hired by the board concluded that the discrimination and hostile work environment claims had not been substantiated, but that letters of reprimand and an unsatisfactory rating with no pay increase given to Ake-Little were not justified.
A second complaint from Ake-Little alleged retaliation by both Mahon and board members, as well as harassment and inappropriate modification of job responsibilities. A subsequent investigation of those claims found “no substantive evidence of retaliation” but did reveal “multiple performance deficiency issues on the part of Dr. Mahon in connection with the allegations made by Dr. Ake-Little,” according to the documents.
Shortly after the publication of The Morning Call article that detailed the employee’s complaints, Ake-Little was suspended with pay pending an investigation into his job performance. He remains on leave.
Gehman, the former board president, also found herself under attack after her public criticism of Mahon sparked a backlash among board members who voted to remove her as president during their June 23 meeting. Complaints against Gehman at that meeting revealed the existence of another investigation, this one alleging fraudulent activity by Mahon that Gehman had investigated.
The letter of recommendation does not detail any allegations against Mahon, merely noting, “In February 2025, certain allegations were raised concerning the Superintendent’s performance.” That date corresponds with Ake-Little’s retaliation complaint, as well as the board meeting at which Matt Greenawald, vice president of the teachers union, called the new student information system “nothing short of a nightmare for our staff.”
February was also the date of conflict related to difficulties faced in finding a long-term substitute for the high school’s Spanish department. Documents provided to The Morning Call indicate that Language Learning Network CEO Sean Kreyling pulled out of contract discussions with the district “because of the superintendent’s tone and attitude.”
Mahon was placed on leave that same month.
Mahon’s letter of recommendation acknowledges the investigation, and says “The Board of Directors acknowledges that this matter, which included an inappropriate release of unsubstantiated information to the media by a district representative, should in no way reflect on his professional capabilities or ethical conduct and has prompted a review of district governance.”
Gehman said the separation agreements contradict the district’s investigatory findings and emphasized that the district is still under state and federal investigation for discrimination and retaliation claims.
“This payout isn’t about limiting liability,” Gehman said, “it’s about personal power and saving face in an election year.”
Mahon came to Southern Lehigh from Lackawanna County in 2021. He was appointed through June 30, 2026, and given an initial salary of $180,000. By 2024-25, that salary had reached nearly $195,000, according to Pennsylvania Department of Education documents. The terms of his initial contract with Southern Lehigh School District can be found here.
The Pennsylvania Public School Code limits the terms of negotiated severance agreements for district superintendents. Agreements that take place less than two years before the end of a contract term cannot exceed half the total compensation and benefits due under the remainder of the contract term.
Gehman questioned the terms of the separation agreements, saying Mahon was awarded more than he was contractually due and calling a vote in favor “an illegal act of gross negligence.”
Wayock pushed back on Gehman’s criticisms, calling them an “absolute lie” and blaming Gehman’s previous board leadership for the need to reach a settlement.
“Every dollar of this agreement is on her,” he said.
After the meeting, Solicitor John Freund told The Morning Call he is confident that the separation agreements have met legal review. During the meeting, Maund and Torba expressed faith in those legal reviews.