Framingham's Fuller Middle School Principal Steps Down

FRAMINGHAM, MA — Fuller Middle School principal Jose Duarte will not return to the school this year. The district announced on Sunday night that Duarte accepted a leadership position in another district. Kerry Wood, current Assistant Director of Secondary Education, will become the Interim Principal at Fuller Middle School, the district said.

In a letter to parents, Framingham Superintendent Robert Tremblay acknowledged that the shift comes "late and at a critical time for Fuller," but added that the staff in the school along with Wood would make sure students stayed on task, regardless of the change. "We thank Mr. Duarte for his service to the Fuller community and wish him well in his future professional endeavors," Tremblay's letter reads.

Wood is a former Fuller department head, and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and Secondary Education from High Point University and a Master of Education in English from Framingham State University. Wood has 21 years of teaching experience at schools in England, Virginia, and Massachusetts. She was a member of Framingham High School’s English Department for 12 years and has served as the ELA Department Head at Fuller Middle School.

Michael Stevens, Vice Principal at Fuller Middle School, will remain in his current role to ensure consistency at Fuller Middle School and will be a key liaison for the school building project. Stevens will work to ensure safe student arrival and dismissal procedures, he will partner with Principal Cyndy Page at McCarthy Elementary School as they collaborate to closely monitor major traffic pattern shifts on Flagg Drive, and he will support Wood in her role as the school’s primary instructional leader.

The Office of Human Resources will embark on a full search for a principal effective the 2020-2021 school year in December/January; it will hold stakeholder meetings and issue a request for participation in a Screening Committee.