PARADISE VALLEY, AZ — The Paradise Valley Unified School District is currently without its leader as the district’s governing board voted unanimously to put its superintendent on leave.
Dr. Todd Cummings just started his contract in July, but months after that start date, the school district, without giving a public reason, put him on leave in a meeting Tuesday night.
According to Cummings’ contract, he was being paid a base salary of $230,000. His contract was set to end on June 30, 2027.
"I don't know a lot about the decision-making process, but before he was chosen as the finalist and a contract was signed, there were people raising red flags about his previous employment. I don't know that our board did their due diligence and researching and learning more about that situation,” said Becca Salay, a parent in the Paradise Valley Unified School District.
Salay is referring to reports that have come from his previous place of employment, the South Bend Community School Corporation in South Bend, Indiana. News outlets from Indiana reported Cummings was placed on leave earlier this year after allegations came to light that he possibly artificially inflated students’ grades.
An investigator, Tim Corbett, hired by the South Bend Community School Corporation, told ABC15 that the investigation is still ongoing.
Reports showed Cummings was placed on leave earlier this year. However, the Paradise Valley Unified School District announced his hiring in March. In April, Corbett and auditor Dianne Froehkle presented some findings to the board.
“There were reports that were given that grades had been changed and that students had been granted credit and grades that were not earned by academic resources. What we found is that there is evidence that supports those claims,” Froehkle said in the meeting.
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Why Cummings is on administrative leave in Paradise Valley remains a mystery. The district told families in an email on Wednesday that they’re “aware that there may be questions surrounding this change. However, because much of this has taken place in Executive Session, where items discussed are legally protected and confidential, the information that can be shared is limited.”
When ABC15 asked the district why Cummings was on leave, it was left unanswered. However, according to a statement from the school board president given out in September, she said they were “aware” of Dr. Cummings’ “pending retirement” before selecting him as superintendent.
The full statement reads: "The Governing Board was aware of Dr. Cummings’ pending retirement from the South Bend Community School Corporation prior to selecting him as superintendent. The allegations regarding grades arose after a contract had been signed with Dr. Cummings, but in a review of the situation in South Bend, it appeared that the issue revolved significantly around post-pandemic changes regarding credit recovery and required “seat time” by students. It seems that SBCSC is acknowledging the impact of these changes in part, for example, by celebrating a graduation rate at one of its high schools climbing from 64% to 89% last school year. While citing a range of programs, most of which would have been in place while Dr. Cummings served as superintendent, for the success, it would have been difficult to achieve such growth without the changes pertaining to credit recovery."
Parents like Salay are worried about the leadership in the district, hoping that they’ll have stability soon.
"I really just wish that our school district could find some peace. We've had so much upheaval over the last couple of years with leadership changes and school closures,” Salay continued. “Our kids deserve a ship that has a captain who can sail us smoothly and ensure that our teachers are supported and our school-level administrators are supported so that our kids can have the best education possible."
Paradise Valley School Board President Anne Greenberg also sent another statement on Wednesday:
"The Paradise Valley Unified School District Governing Board voted unanimously on September 30, 2025, to appoint Dr. Dan Courson as the acting superintendent for PVSchools. This came after a unanimous vote of the Board to place Superintendent Dr. C. Todd Cummings on paid administrative leave following a special meeting on Monday where the board met in Executive Session for the purpose of discussing or consulting with an attorney regarding the Superintendent’s employment agreement, review of complaint(s) received and related employment matters.
Dr. Courson is the Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Leadership and is also the District's Title IX coordinator. He oversees all secondary principals for the District, including the departments of Athletics, Career and Technical Education, and Student Services (Secondary).
Previous to his current role, Dr. Courson has served as Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction Director of Leadership in the Deer Valley Unified School District, principal of Horizon High School in PVSchools, and a middle school principal in a neighboring district. He was also a high school English and math teacher."
