After three years, steps toward an access road for emergency vehicles to Riccardi Elementary School in the hamlet of Glasco have been taken. Saugerties town government accepted a 50-by-200-foot swathe of land south of the school as a gift from propertyowner Jimmy Bruno at its August 15 town board meeting.
New Paltz School District residents who feel that the swift replacement of the middle school principal represented a missed opportunity are, in the week of still more administrative openings, redoubling their efforts to inject transparency into the hiring process.
The Saugerties school board held a special meeting this week to discuss the parameters of its search for a new superintendent to replace Seth Turner, who will leave at the end of September for a similar job on Long Island.
The district welcomed a new assistant principal for the Middle School as the search beings for a new principal for Duzine Elementary.
The new principal of the New Paltz Middle School students, Ann Sheldon, assumed the school’s top leadership position on July 1. She previously served two years as assistant principal. Sheldon replaces Dr. Richard Wiesenthal, who retired at the end of the present school year.
This coming school yearh, the talented tenor will will be spending his Saturdays in the Juilliard pre-college program.
Saugerties is likely to seek to hire an interim schools superintendent to help steer the school district. The search for a permanent replacement for outgoing district administrative leader Seth Turner could take around six months.
Trustees reorganize, appoint new principles for Crosby, JFK.
Several community members objected to the unexpected resignation of the middle-school principal and quick appointment of a successor, which one said was “shrouded in mystery.” Specifically, they said the appointment was a missed opportunity to increase diversity among administrators. There was talk of a lawsuit.
The Saugerties school board is getting down to the job of replacing schools superintendent Seth Turner and business manager Lissa Jilek.
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