Steven Archibald selected as South Lyon Community Schools superintendent
The South Lyon Community Schools’ Board of Education has selected Steven Archibald to serve as the district’s next superintendent.
On Tuesday, the board selected Archibald, by a 7-0 vote, over Matthew Outlaw, superintendent of the Brandon School District. Final interviews were conducted on Tuesday, May 5.
Archibald has spent his entire 30-year career with Livonia Public Schools serving as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, and central administrator. He has served as a central administrator for the past nine years, including as assistant superintendent of human resources since November 2017.
“I’m extremely fortunate,” he told The Oakland Press. “I’ve always said that no one has had a more blessed career than I have with the opportunities and the folks I’ve had the chance to work with in Livonia. To have the opportunity to join South Lyon as superintendent is really a golden opportunity.”
Archibald, a New Hudson resident, said he was very selective when looking at area superintendent openings, but added that being superintendent in his community was an opportunity he couldn’t pass up.
“It needed to be the right fit for me to leave a place I’ve been for 30 years and one I’ve called my home and family,” he said. “The district’s sense of community and pride, and the way the community values education, made for an excellent fit based on what I’ve experienced and what I’ve believed.”
From 1990 to 1994, he taught a math and physical education at Frost Middle School before heading to Livonia Churchill High School to teach math. In 1994, he landed his first first administrative job, serving as assistant principal at Livonia Churchill High School.
Six years later, he became principal of Livonia Stevenson High School, a position he would hold
“I’m extremely fortunate. I’ve always said that no one has had a more blessed career than I have with the opportunities and the folks I’ve had the chance to work with in Livonia. To have the opportunity to join South Lyon as superintendent is really a golden opportunity.”
— Steven Archibald
for the next 11 years. From 2011 to 2015, he served as the district’s director of secondary programs, before adding director of district services to his title in August 2015.
He addressed the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic has created, and will continue to create, for school districts across the state, especially as the new academic year approaches in the fall.
“This entire situation has been difficult to get your head around because as soon as you think you have a firm position, then something shifts,” he said. “Fortunately, we’re all working on this together as an entire state. The best thing we can do is take the information we know, make some logical assumptions, and then begin to shape thinking around multiple scenarios whether we are doing full in-person instruction, some kind of blend, or complete remote instruction.”
He said as more information is gathered over the summer, the district will begin to further shape its teaching and learning models around that information.
“There are still a lot more questions right now than answers,” he added. “We need to get a lot of voices in the room to be able to put the best plan in place that we can for teaching and learning.”
Archibald will step into his new role on July 1, one that will pay him $165,000 to $185,000 in base salary per year. He’s planning to continue working with Livonia Public Schools through the end of June.