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Principal Michael Hall’s involvement in the abrupt halt of the musical planned by Ohio's Cardinal High School students remains unclear as parents and students continue to express their frustration. Cardinal Local Schools District’s officials canceled the production after deeming it "vulgar" and not family-friendly.
On Monday, January 30, 2023, officials aired their decision to call off the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Cardinal High School’s spring production, through a letter to parents.
As the reasoning behind their decision, the school district stated that the participation of two gay men as characters in the play and a cameo from Jesus Christ was inappropriate for pre-teens and young audiences. In addition, the board also voiced their disapproval of a song titled My Unfortunate E**ection.
However, the organizers claimed that the production only used a school-friendly parody of the Tony Award-winning song My Unfortunate Distraction.
How long has Michael Hall been the principal at Cardinal High?
As per Michael Hall’s LinkedIn bio, he joined Middlefield’s Cardinal High School in Ohio, United States, as its principal in July 2021 and is currently posted there. He has a 30-year-experience in secondary education, among which he spent six years as an administrator and the rest of the 24 years as a maths teacher.
He previously worked as an assistant principal at Navarre’s Fairness Local School District from July 2016 to August 2021. From July 2013 to July 2016, Michael Hall was a mathematics teacher, as well as the head football coach and co-strength training coach at Minerva’s Minerva Local School District.
Michael Hall was posted as a math teacher and the offensive coordinator for the varsity football program at Massillon Perry Local School District from July 2005 to July 2013. Before that, he taught mathematics at Howland Local School District in Warren, Ohio. Additionally, Hall was also a wrestling coach as well as a varsity assistant football coach. He was in that school for a year between 2004 and 2005.
As per LinkedIn, Hall’s first teaching job was in Wickliffe City School District, where he taught math and was also the Chair of the department. Alongside, he served as the head baseball coach, head football coach, and the varsity assistant wrestling coach at the school from August 1992 to July 2014.
Michael Hall received his M.Ed degree in Educational Leadership and General Administration from Ken State University in 1998. Prior to that, he finished his Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from the same university in 1992. Hall later completed his Principal Licensure program at Ashland University in 2016. Three years later, in 2019, Michael Hall secured his Superintendency license from Youngstown State University.
Students and parents react to the school district calling off the musical
The school district reasoned that the musical had song lyrics and dialog that contained vulgarity, which should not be showcased in front of children and teenage students within an educational setting. Moreover, addressing the district’s problem with the two gay male parents who participated in the musical, officials stated that if anyone alleges the decision was discriminatory, they are mistaken.
Students and parents were furious at the decision after several months of planning and rehearsals, and hundreds of dollars went into the production of the musical comedy. Riley Matchinga, a student who played the lead role in the now-canceled musical, said:
“When we found out it was canceled, everybody was just heartbroken. Honestly, it was terrible. Everyone was just crying.”
Riley’s mother, Mandi Matchinga, who was the assistant director for the musical, was stunned to learn that the production was halted when the school had already given the production a greenlight months ago.
Mandi reiterated that the changes to the dialog and the songs to make them more family-friendly were made months ago. They also had permission slips for the play to be signed. However, the school's superintendent denied Mandi’s claim and said that the school board and the district administration never approved the musical, rather a resident submitted a complaint against the play on January 11.
Jack Cunningham, the superintendent, stated that the school district wanted musical productions from its students to be something that people of all ages from the community could enjoy without consideration for controversial issues and adult supervision. However, no direct statement from Cardinal High School's principal Michael Hall has been received yet.
