New middle school principal eager to get started in Ledyard

Ledyard — Ledyard Middle School starts the 2019-20 academic year next week with two grades worth of new students, a new building and a new principal.

Ryan Earley comes to the middle school after four years as principal at Dr. Helen Baldwin Middle School in Canterbury and 10 years in various positions in two New Hampshire school districts. He fills the vacancy left by the resignation of Chris Pomroy earlier this month.

Speaking on his second day in Ledyard and a few hours before the school held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to complete its $40 million renovation, Earley said Tuesday that he was excited to join the team and is ready to give it his all.

“I really enjoyed my time in Canterbury, but it was time to move on,” he said. “Ledyard, being a bigger school, has more systems in place to try to influence change for students, so I’m really hoping to get my feet settled in there and call that home for a long time.”

A native and current resident of Glocester, R.I., Earley said he enjoys working at the middle school level because it’s a pivotal time in the students’ lives. They can still be kids and have their own dreams and goals, and he wants to support students as

they find their passions. He likes watching them develop as people and start to make major decisions that will set them on their future course, such as which classes to take.

It’s also a pivotal time for the school, as the redistricting process brings in the district’s sixth-graders for the first time. With both the new sixth-graders and the new seventh-graders who spent sixth grade in elementary school, he said it’s a great opportunity to redefine the middle school experience for Ledyard’s students.

“I hope to be a part of laying that groundwork and foundation so that that becomes a greater support for the town and the students,” he said.