Assistant Principals

Student Last Names A-F
Phone: 724-625-4444, ext. 1601
Email: mbarlak@pinerichland.org

Mr. Barlak has been an assistant principal at Pine-Richland High School since February 7, 2022.

Prior to joining Pine-Richland, Mr. Barlak served as an assistant principal at Gateway School District from 2017 to 2022. During his tenure there, he was also the program manager for the mathematics, special education, and physical education departments. In the mathematics department, he analyzed growth and projection data to support the development of student and classroom interventions. He administered individualized student programming in the special education department and collaborated with families and planning teams. Additionally, he was the chair of the School Safety Team and Student Assistance Program at Gateway High School and developed a mathematics intervention system at Moss Middle School. Before his administrative roles, Mr. Barlak taught mathematics at Woodland Hills High School.

At Pine-Richland High School, Mr. Barlak oversees departments including Mathematics, JROTC, School Counseling, Engineering & Tech Education and Social Work. He manages students with last names A-F. His responsibilities also encompass the lead in creating the master schedule, CEW Standards, Student Assistance Program (SAP), and the high school's Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS). Mr. Barlak also works closely with the College in High School programs and oversees sustainability initiatives.

Mr. Barlak holds a bachelor of science in secondary mathematics education from Youngstown State University and a master’s degree in education from California University of Pennsylvania. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in education and school leadership at PennWest University.

Student Last Names P-Z
Email: tkuchnicki@pinerichland.org
Phone: 724 625-4444, ext. 1610

Mrs. Kuchnicki was school board-approved as assistant principal of Pine-Richland High School on July 14, 2022. Prior to being the assistant principal, Mrs. Kuchnicki worked at Pine-Richland High School as a special education teacher for five years and was the secondary special education department chair. Mrs. Kuchnicki serves students last names P-Z at the high school and oversees the Special Education, GATE, Health and Physical Education, Family and Consumer Science, and Business and Computer Science departments. Additionally, Mrs. Kuchnicki is the administrative lead that oversees Keystone Exams for students. 

Mrs. Kuchnicki has helped build a positive school culture through our school-wide Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports (PBIS) program called RAMS Way. During the 2023-2024 school year, the RAMS Way team was recognized by the Allegheny Intermediate Unit (AIU) and Pennsylvania Department of Education for reaching Tier 1 Fidelity. Mrs. Kuchnicki said, “Earning Tier 1 fidelity at our high school is very rewarding for our team as we have worked extremely hard through the past two years to revamp our PBIS program. We look forward to the future growth and development of RAMS Way.”

Prior to working at Pine-Richland, Mrs. Kuchnicki held the role of transition coordinator/special education teacher at Lifesteps Transition Program for four years, and special education teacher at The Summit Academy for two-and-a-half years. She earned a bachelor of science degree in special education and elementary education at Slippery Rock University, a master’s degree in education for special education supervision, and a principal certificate from Point Park University.