Jun 22, 2024 By Paul Paterra 4 min read

CHARLEROI – Charleroi school directors voted to publicly censure board Vice President Adele Hopkins for her refusal to shake hands with a graduate during the May 31 commencement ceremony.

Each of the seven board members in attendance at Thursday’s school board meeting voted in favor of the censure. Hopkins and Elaine Pappasergi were not there.

The graduate, Emma Clish, addressed the board Thursday and asked for Hopkins’ resignation. Clish said Hopkins’ refusal to shake her hand ruined her graduation.

“Miss Hopkins embarrassed me and my family, all of whom have been longtime members of the Charleroi community,” she said. “I’m bringing this to the community and the board’s attention to call for the resignation of Miss Hopkins immediately due to the lack of respect for the students she’s elected to represent and the inability to do her job and duties without prejudice.”

Solicitor Rebecca Hall read the resolution calling for Hopkins’ censure.

“The board will not allow director Hopkins’ actions and behavior at commencement to be attributed to the Charleroi Area School District or the board,” Hall read. “That behavior does not reflect the values of the board or the district.”

Hall said the board lacks legal authority to remove a fellow school director.

Hopkins’ daughters – Kristen Hopkins-Kalcek and Leanna Spada – read a letter Thursday stating their mother’s actions stemmed from an incident at a local restaurant in which Clish created a Snapchat social media post that read, “The morons are here at the table next to me, Gino Spada, Abby Cain, and Adele Hopkins.”

“The alleged student was at the table next to our family, including my mother, Adele Hopkins, my son Gino and his girlfriend,” Leanna Spada read from the letter. “The impact of this post was devastating to our family, particularly for my son and his girlfriend, who received the news of this post from other peers in their graduating class.”

The two said they did not condone their mother’s decision to refrain from shaking hands with Clish but said Hopkins’ reaction was a silent protest of the bullying she felt resulted from the Snapchat post. They said she acted as a grandmother and private citizen.

“This post not only damaged our family’s reputation, but also caused significant emotional distress, especially to my son and his girlfriend, who also are the members of the 2024 graduating class at Charleroi Area High School,” the letter read. “They became the true victims in this situation.”

Clish admitted to the post referring to Hopkins and her family members as “morons.”

“To my regret, I did call this board’s vice president, Miss Hopkins, a moron in a group chat among so-called friends in response to the dismissal of these concerns,” she said. “That message was meant to be private between a group of teenagers and not a publicly posted comment.”

Clish also referred to a letter she drafted expressing concerns about the district that she said came from the student body and faculty, which she believed was the genesis of Hopkins’ action. She said she gave the letter to Dr. Patricia Mason, high school principal, with the understanding it would go to the board.

“That letter was never responded to,” Clish said. “There are many reports of members of the board dismissing and laughing off other concerns.”

According to the letter read by Hopkins’ daughters, she never saw Clish’s letter until it was posted on Facebook the day after commencement and did not have anything to do with her actions at commencement. Superintendent Dr. Edward Zelich also said he did not see the letter.

When contacted Friday, Hopkins, a school director for 22 years, said she has no intention of resigning.

“The letter was a moot point she brought up after graduation,” Hopkins said. “I was not only defending my grandson and his girlfriend who did nothing to her, but I was representing the board saying this is not right for a student to call a board member a moron, centered around bullying online, and have no repercussions. If I would have congratulated her and shook her hand, I would have been sending a message to other students that it would be OK to abuse board members or whoever.”