Middle School Assistant Principal Lone Administrator Without New Contract

The Long Valley Middle School will enter the 2015-16 school year with a new assistant principal, marking the sixth administrator to fill the role in eight years.

The district posted for the opening earlier this spring, seeking a 12-month leadership position at the school, available July 1. Deadline for application submissions was May 8.

The current Long Valley Middle School assistant principal, Ellyn High, was the only school building administrator in the district to not have a contract renewal offer following a Board of Education vote on May 12.

Long Valley Middle School Principal Mark Ippolito, Flocktown-Kossman Principal and Assistant Principal Michael Craver and John Winstead, respectively, Old Farmers Road School Principal Joe Ciulla, and Cucinella School Principal and Assistant Principal Jolene Battitori and Monica Whitmore, respectively, all received renewal offers.

When the position was first posted, it required an administrator with expertise in Language Arts. A second posting was issued, which omitted that need. Superintendent Jeff Mohre told Patch Wednesday he omitted the requirement due to the hiring of literacy coach Betty Paolella since the last time the position was posted. Paolella now fills that role in the building, Mohre said.

Revolving Door

High’s short tenure and lack of new contract (Mohre would not discuss the reason for a non-renewal, citing personnel information disclosure rules) isn’t uncommon at the Middle School, however.

Since Ippolito – a Long Valley native himself – became the school building’s leader in 2008, there have been five assistant principals at the school.

In 2008-2009, Jacqui Micari-Christiano, the then-LVMS assistant principal in her second year, did not receive a renewal offer. She is now the vice principal at Valley Middle School in the Oakland School District.

Following her was Craver, who spent one year in the role before assuming the building lead position at Flocktown-Kossmann.

After Craver came Jay Eitner, who spent two years in the position before resigning in August 2012. Eitner is now the superintendent of schools at Lower Alloways Creek School District.

The district went with an interim assistant principal after Eitner, longtime staffer Phil Kinney who currently serves as an administrative consultant. It was during that time that High was hired and began during the 2013-14 school year.

No other administrators have changed in the district, including the assistant superintendent, superintendent, and business administrator, since 2010.

When asked why the revolving door at the position in the Middle School, Mohre said the district is “always looking to assemble the best teams possible.”

The interview process is well underway, Mohre said, with candidates currently going through the second round of meetings and a third round expected for finalists. It’s up to Mohre and the central office to make a recommendation to the Board of Education, who will then extend the one-year offer as listed in the job posting.

The board’s next meeting is scheduled for June 9, 2015, at the Long Valley Middle School.

Do you think the frequent turnover is good or bad for the students and faculty at Long Valley Middle School?

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