OXFORD – Dedication, commitment, passionate, respected, no nonsense and motivational leader were some of the words Oxford Special Programs Director Dawn Hover used to describe fellow administrator Christine Pierce as she expressed her feelings about the high school principal’s resignation.
“I value and appreciate all you’ve done,” Hover told Pierce, who tendered her resignation on Friday. “You’ll be greatly missed.
Pierce has worked at Oxford for 13 years as an educator, dean of students, internal claims auditor and administrator, and most recently high school principal. Her resignation was accepted “with regret” by members of the board of education on Monday. Her final day will be April 1.
“We’re going to miss Chris,” Superintendent Randy Squier said. “She was a fun part of our team.”
Pierce, who remained composed as her colleagues and members of the board bid her a teary farewell, is leaving the district for a position outside of education. Her new employer will be the Village of Greene, where she will replace Suzanne Jones as the municipality’s clerk/treasurer.
Jones, who has worked for the village for 31 years, is due to retire in mid-July. Pierce is slated to begin her new job on April 5 and will work alongside Jones until her retirement.
Although Village of Greene Mayor Marcia Miller said the municipality is sorry to see Jones leave after all her years of service, she believes that, with her strong financial background, Pierce will be a good addition.
“We’re pleased to welcome her to our team,” the mayor reported.
According to Miller, a number of qualified candidates had shown interest in the position and she said it had been a difficult decision.
The search for Jones’ successor began in January, and Pierce’s appointment was confirmed by the village’s board of trustees last night.
How the Oxford School District will replace the departing principal remains to be seen. School leaders are currently working to develop a budget for the upcoming academic year which will bring spending into alignment with the $331,933 reduction in state aid the district is facing.
Squier discussed several staffing scenarios at last night’s school board meeting, including one which involved cutting two administrative positions. Another evaluated the impact on remaining administrators if one administrative position were to be cut. He also illustrated the effect on class size and number of sections offered if the number of grade 7 to 12 teachers were reduced by one in each core content area – such as science, math, English and social studies.
“They’re just scenarios,” the superintendent stressed. “They are not recommendations.”
At the request of the board, Squier also provided a list of programs currently offered by the school that are not mandated by the state education department. Some of these items – like the fact that neither Kindergarten nor Pre-Kindergarten are mandated – came as a surprise to those present. In addition, he explained, while the district offers a total of seven Regents courses in math and science, only one is required in each of these core content areas.
In terms of positions, the superintendent said that while each building must have a principal, registered nurses are not mandated. Nor is it required to have school counselors and librarians in the primary and middle schools.
“I’m certainly not suggesting any of that here,” Squier assured the board.
The district administrator said he planned to have multiple scenarios/proposals for the board’s review at a special budget meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. on Monday, March 29. Squier said the proposals will all be aimed at keeping any proposed tax levy increase at or below 2.5 percent, as directed by the board.