New assistant superintendent hired
■ School board members also hired a director of operations.
School board members hired two new administrators — an assistant superintendent of curriculum and an operations director — at a special school board meeting Thursday.
Amy Carter, current director of staff development and accountability at Pea Ridge School District, was hired to serve as assistant superintendent. Shane Patrick, current assistant principal at Southwest Junior High School in Springdale, was hired for the director of operations position.
The new employees represent a slight restructuring of leadership responsibilities in the district, according to Jody Wiggins, who will step into the role of superintendent on July
1. The assistant superintendent of curriculum will be responsible for academics, including curriculum development, and will supervise the administrative directors as well as the instructional facilitators at each building, he said.
The director of operations will handle day-to-day operations of the district and will be responsible for support services, including all of classified maintenance, transportation, food services and
technology, as well as building projects and facilities maintenance, Wiggins said.
There were 25 applicants for the assistant superintendent position and Carter was one of eight candidates interviewed for the job, Wiggins said. She was the unanimous choice of the hiring committee, which included Wiggins; Michelle Paden, Northside Elementary School principal; Terri Raskiewicz, chief financial officer; Todd Cross, technology director; and instructional facilitators Kelle Meeker, Rebecca Defreece and Susan Zimmerman, he said.
Carter grew up in the Van Buren area and earned a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Arkansas Tech University, a master’s in educational leadership from ATU, and an educational specialist degree from Arkansas State University, according to her resume.
In addition to serving as intermediate school principal and director of staff development and accountability at Pea Ridge School District, she has also served as an educational consultant for struggling schools around the state for Elbow-2-Elbow Educational Consulting, and as a classroom teacher and teacher evaluator/ master teacher in the Van Buren School District.
“After visiting with her references, it is evident Mrs. Carter is a respected educational leader, she is extremely knowledgeable and has excellent communication skills,” the letter of recommendation from the hiring committee states. “Her dedication to education and commitment to excellence were evident throughout the interview.”
Patrick was one of eight applicants interviewed for the position by a hiring committee consisting of Wiggins; Kelly Svebek, director of assessment and accountability; Amy Hufford, Southside Elementary School Principal; Leslie Moore, English as a second or foreign language director; and Raskiewicz.
Patrick earned his bachelor’s degree in education at Southern Arkansas University where he also played football and his master’s degree in curriculum and instruction at Louisiana Tech University, according to his resume.
He started his career as a teacher and assistant football coach at West Ouachita (La.) High School before taking on the same role at the Ruston (La.) High School, according to a letter of recommendation from the hiring committee. He then served as head football coach at Mountain Home High School before being hired as head football coach and assistant athletic director at Springdale High School.
As a coach, Patrick was awarded numerous honors, including the 2006 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette High School Coach of the Year, and has served as both the AAA Sports Medicine Advisory Board and on the Arkansas High School Coaches Association Board of Directors, the letter states.
In 2014, Patrick transitioned into administration as the assistant principal at Southwest Junior High. In that position, he has been in charge of special education, safety and technology, Wiggins said.
“His references describe Shane as a hard worker, an exceptional leader, a highly organized person and a team player,” the hiring committee’s letter of recommendation states. “They further say that he works well with a wide variety of people, has the ability to de-escalate tense situations, maintains others’ trust and confidence, and makes fair decisions based on policy and/or law.”
In other business, the school board hired the following additional staff:
• Whitney Green, middle school reading interventionist
• Tiffany Hamilton, high school audio video technology and film teacher
• Natalie Scott, high school English teacher
• Lara Irvin, high school physical science and chemistry teacher.
The school board accepted the following resignations:
• Kailey Greenleaf, high school English language arts teacher and assistant volleyball and track coach
• Jennifer Sadler, high school math teacher
• Anita Teel, high school library media specialist
• Melanie Maldonado, high school Spanish teacher
• Karis Buff, intermediate school special education teacher
• Carla Geanolous, intermediate sixth grade teacher
• Dawn Hammonds, intermediate sixth grade math teacher
• Bethany Jeppsen, intermediate fifth grade social studies/language arts teacher
• Rachael Webb, intermediate fifth grade math teacher
• Brad Leach, middle school eighth grade science teacher
• Renee Noerhe, middle school special education teacher
• Rhonda Rowe, high school special education teacher
• Joyce Timmons, intermediate music teacher.
School board members also approved two transfers to the Gentry School District.