When students return to the classroom in the coming weeks, it will be under somewhat new leadership in many Island schools.
Among the changes, there will be a new assistant superintendent in the district’s front office, new principals in Oak Bluffs, Chilmark, and Edgartown, and, so far, an unfilled assistant principal position at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School.
“In my 22 years, we’ve never had this much changeover,” Superintendent Richie Smith told The Times in the weeks ahead of the new school year.
That said, the superintendent is confident in the leaders who have been selected to fill the vacant positions, and he said that a search was made in a well-thought-out and competent way.
“I couldn’t be happier with the candidates I’ve got,” Smith said.
The most recent additions include the hiring of a new assistant superintendent.
Still, a couple of the newly named administrators are coming out of retirement from Vineyard schools.
Former Oak Bluffs Principal Megan Farrell, who announced at the end of the school year she would be retiring as principal of the grade school, will take a part-time job as the assistant superintendent. Smith said that the intention is to make the position full-time next year, but the budget currently has funded the position for three days a week at 60 percent of the salary. Smith said that will allow the district to focus on other needs, like the opening of the new Tisbury School, before budgeting the position as full-time.
With Jeremy Light named as principal of the Oak Bluffs School earlier this summer — to fill Farrell’s vacancy — the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School has an opening for an assistant principal. Smith said that they have named former Oak Bluffs Police Officer Jared Andrews as director of student affairs to help that transition. Andrews most recently worked with Martha’s Vineyard Community Services.
High School Principal Sara Dingledy said that right now the school has a number of director roles, but no one officially has a title of assistant principal. She said that could change this year, as the director of curriculum and instruction, Justine de Oliveira, has the licensure for the assistant principal position.
Among the other changes around the Island, the Edgartown School and the Chilmark School also have new principals.
John Stevens was named interim principal of the Edgartown School earlier this year. Stevens, who was the principal for the school for more than a decade before retiring in 2019, has most recently served in the assistant superintendent position. He replaces Shelley Einbinder, who retired as principal in April. Deborah DeBettencourt will step in as assistant principal, after Mary Ann Bartlett stepped down last school year.
In Chilmark, Kate Squire, a former fourth-grade teacher in the Concord public school system, has been chosen to lead the up-Island school. Susan Stevens announced in October that she would retire after the end of this school year in Chilmark.
Smith said that with all the changeover, he likes his new team. He said that hiring educators with varied skill sets has given the district the flexibility to find solutions to staffing needs.
Sam Houghton great job keeping track of who’s who. I’m glad the Superintendent is happy with his choices some of them sound solid but some seem suspiciously like double dipping. If you know what I mean.
Tom, what do youmean?
Do you have specific concerns?
Are you concerned that ‘teachers’ who have earned full retirement benefits will earn the same as those with less experience?
Are you bothered that retired teachers can receive full Social Security benefits for their non teaching work?
Is that what you mean by double dipping?
Yes
Is it immoral?
Teachers do not receive full Social Security benefits when they receive their retirement benefits because of what Social Security calls Windfall regardless of how much they have contributed over the years. In addition, there are time and earning rettrictions on reemployment with Mass Public employer. It is extremely difficult for retired educators to ” double dip”!
What is rettriction
A spelling error.
We all make them.
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