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Search continues for new principal at LCHS

May 31, 2007|ASHLEY HOOKER

Of the four candidates most recently interviewed by the Lincoln County High School site-based council, none had the qualifications required to fill the principal position at Lincoln County High School, Superintendent Teresa Wallace said, and for the third time, the job will be posted in hopes of drawing more applicants.

"During the interviews, we realized that no one could do all of the management and instructional duties," Wallace said. "The high school doesn't want to give up on the criteria they want in a principal."

One step the school board has taken to resolve the problem is the creation of a new position at the high school, a school administrative manager. The SAM will take the place of the Academic Performance Consultant, a position which the board abolished at the meeting. The basic role of the person who is hired for the new position, according to the job description, is to be responsible for all administrative duties that are not directly related to instruction and student achievement including assisting the principal in managing school activities, supervision of classified support personnel, coordination of activities, transportation and building maintenance. "This will leave the principal free to spend 75 to 80 percent of the time on instruction," said Wallace, who stated that finding a candidate who has experience as an instructional leader is one of the criteria that the school council is unwilling to compromise.

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Several Kentucky counties have implemented this type of leadership set-up, said Wallace. "I've heard only very positive comments about it," she said. The new setup will require extensive training, which will be attended by the principal, school administrative manager, and the superintendent, and will take place during the summer. A coach will also spend one day per month in the school with the SAM for further training. The duties of the assistant principals will remain unchanged, and they will continue to handle discipline issues as they have in the past.

In other business, Principal Marilyn Hafley and APC/Gifted and Talented Instructor Gwen Lawson gave the Comprehensive School Instructional Plan presentation for Hustonville Elementary. Lawson shared the school's strategies to improve their overall achievement, and specifically addressed the gap between students on free and reduced lunch and other students in reading and math. First year kindergarten teacher Amy Duncan stated that the implementation of curriculum maps and full collaboration of instruction with other teachers has improved the quality of education in the school. Hafley credits the school's Great Leaps program with increasing focus on individual abilities of the students, allowing them to progress at their own pace. Kindergartner Casey Taylor, who is now reading at a second grade level after spending the year in the program, read her favorite book to the school board.

Also present were two parent volunteers who have spent time with students during the school year, helping with reading and math. Joyce Hester expressed her excitement at the improvements she has seen in the children she works with. "It has been so much fun," she said, "and they have really made a lot of progress." Both she and fellow volunteer Jennifer Mendez were moved to tears as they spoke about their work at Hustonville Elementary. "I think we made an impact on the kids that they'll always remember," said Mendez.

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