Houston High principal Kyle Cherry resigns
Houston High School Principal Kyle Cherry confirmed Monday afternoon that he has resigned as head of the only high school in the Germantown Municipal School District.
Cherry said the responsibilities of the job have impacted his family.
“The overwhelming stress and pressures of this position have taken a tremendous toll on me as a person, as a father, as a husband, as a family member, and as a friend,” Cherry said in a statement to the Houston faculty, “and I now need to practice what I preach and put family first.”
Cherry’s last day was Friday. The district announced Rob Taylor, the assistant principal for the 12th grade, will act as interim principal for the remainder of the school year.
The resignation comes after a Houston High teacher was suspended earlier this month, with GMSD officials saying the “safety and well-being of students is our primary concern.” According to an April 13 statement from the district, the unnamed teacher was “placed on an unpaid leave of absence (suspension) while we conduct a thorough investigation into the matter.”
Cherry was named principal at Houston in 2014 when GMSD opened. He has worked at the school since 2009.
Houston is the only high school in the suburb’s municipal system. Germantown High School, along with Germantown Elementary and Germantown Middle schools, remained under the Shelby County Schools system when the suburban district was created.