North Catholic hires former Pitt, Duquesne basketball assistant as athletic director

By: Chris Harlan
Tuesday, April 5, 2022 | 5:04 PM

Bill Barton, a former assistant college basketball coach at Pitt and Duquesne, is returning to Western Pennsylvania as athletic director at North Catholic.

The high school announced his hire Tuesday. Barton works now as athletic director at Saint Joseph Prep, a Catholic school in Boston and will start work at North Catholic on April 25.

Barton was a Duquesne assistant under coach Ron Everhart for three seasons from 2007-10, and later worked five at Pitt under Jamie Dixon, a span that included three NCAA Tournament appearances.

In a press release, North Catholic noted that Barton has a Master of Business Administration degree from Suffolk University, adding that his “business acumen has paid off for St. Joe’s in the way he has streamlined the athletic budget, revamped the athletic department, increased donations to build an on-campus athletic field. North Catholic is banking on him bringing those skills to Cranberry.”

He replaces Brian Miller, who was hired as athletic director at Plum in February.

“We were looking to hire someone who could elevate the position,” North Catholic principal Michael Palcsey said in a statement. “We were blessed to have some amazing candidates, but Bill stood out with unparalleled experience with both high school and college coaching credentials. Pair that with his business knowledge and his devotion to his Catholic faith, and Bill appears to embody the various disciplines that we aim to instill in each of our students.”

Barton also is a former high school coach at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, Mass., and led the team to two prep school national championships. Among his former players were Pitt’s Carl Krauser and Duquesne’s Sean James.

He also has coached cross country, baseball and football.

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: North Catholic