It was about 10:20 a.m., during fourth period on a recent Friday at North Allegheny Senior High School, and Rob Greenleaf was teaching his sociology class.
He doesn’t remember what happened next.
Nearby, Joy Manesiotis was teaching 11th grade mathematics that April 4 when students came in from Greenleaf’s room to say he collapsed midsentence.
She immediately told the students to go get help.
“I quickly called the main office to tell them what happened,” Manesiotis said.
“There were two students in the front of the classroom with Mr. Greenleaf. One was rolling him over. He was blue and unresponsive. Mr. Greenleaf’s students had a 911 emergency dispatcher on speaker phone. The 911 dispatcher advised to start chest compressions,” said Manesiotis, who began doing so.
“The two students remained with me, looking for a pulse,” she said.
About the same time, technology and engineering teacher Justin Karolski was alerted to the incident when he heard the room number conveyed over the school radio. He also received an alert on Pulse Point, an app that sends a notification if CPR is needed nearby.
Karolski said the senior high school has multiple automated external defibrillators in the building, with at least one on each floor.
“Based on the reports of CPR needed, I rushed to the third-floor AED and grabbed it on my way to the classroom where the emergency was occurring,” said Karolski, who is an active advanced emergency medical technician and CPR instructor at Shaler Hampton EMS.
When he entered the room, he found Manesiotis performing CPR, and students and staff members scattered around the room. He began to take over CPR, and school counselor Kevin Thompson assisted with getting the AED in place, he said.
“Having worked in emergency services for nine years, I have performed and trained in CPR/AED usage hundreds of times,” said Karolski, a North Allegheny graduate and McCandless resident.
The first teacher to assist Manesiotis was Chris Ruffolo, a GOAL teacher, who spoke to the 911 operator while Manesiotis performed chest compressions.
North Allegheny athletic coaches are required to be trained in CPR. Manesiotis, who covers girls golf for the district, said her last training was in June at the Baierl Center.
Greenleaf, 58, later found out how his students acted quickly, learning one called the office, another called 911, and a few went directly to Manesiotis.
“They were very helpful during the incident,” he said.
Greenleaf, originally from Murrysville, lives on the eastern side of Pittsburgh and is recovering. He has not yet returned to school, but he is entirely grateful.
“Mrs. Manesiotis and Mr. Karolski were awesome. NA is a wonderful place filled with knowledgeable and skilled individuals. Mrs. Manesiotis and Mr. Karolski truly came through in a big way and played a crucial role in saving my life,” Greenleaf said.
Manesiotis, also a North Allegheny graduate, said the immediate responses from the students led to the subsequent lifesaving actions.
“The students were fantastic. They remained calm and were helpful,” she said. “Mr. Greenleaf lived because of the quick response and concern from his students.”
Karolski, who teaches 11th and 12th grade technology education, agreed.
“The students acted extremely admirably from early recognition of an emergency, to rapidly activating both internal and external emergency services to calmly following directions. I cannot emphasize enough how their actions truly saved a life that day,” Karolski said.
An ambulance crew from the McCandless-Franklin Park Ambulance Authority responded to the call.
The American Heart Association has a chain of survival in cases like these, which, by following a series of steps, can increase the chances of survival, MFPAA Chief Chris Dell said.
These first steps include recognition of cardiac arrest and calling emergency response, early CPR and chest compressions, rapid defibrillation and then advanced resuscitation, which was followed through by MFPAA, according to Dell.
When the MFPAA arrived, Greenleaf had a pulse, and the crew was able to provide the advanced life support measures and transportation to a local hospital. Dell said when a person comes out of cardiac arrest, they are still extremely unstable.
While the MFPAA arrived quickly, Dell said the actions done at the school were important, including having Karolski’s EMT background.
“What those kids and teachers did mattered greatly,” Dell said.
North Allegheny police Chief Eric Harpster presented both of the teachers with a Chief’s Challenge Coin, a designation reserved for instances of outstanding service and acts of heroism.
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“When one of our colleagues experienced a heart attack, Joy and Justin remained calm and acted decisively, providing immediate assistance and performing lifesaving measures that undoubtedly made a difference. Their quick thinking and compassion in such a high-pressure situation are remarkable, and we are grateful for their unwavering professionalism and care. Heroes like Justin and Joy go above and beyond in moments of crisis, ensuring the safety and well-being of those around them,” Harpster said.