Parents, teachers hear of leadership changes at the Primary School

Published 8:00 am Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Concerned parents of students and teachers and staff from the Primary School listened as school district Superintendent Fred McCarthy presented leadership plans for the Primary School.

The meeting was held in the wake of Bernie Mahar’s resignation as principal earlier this month.

Last week’s meeting was held to reassure parents and staff that the resignation and change in leadership will not impact education.

McCarthy told the group, Eric Nerison, principal of the Intermediate School will be the administrator for both the Intermediate School and Primary School. The new director of the Primary School, Jan McNeely, was also introduced to the group.

Nerison will have the assistance of Val Brown, at the Intermediate School.

Mahar resigned Jan. 30 after she was placed on administrative leave due to an investigation into a financial matter.

McCarthy said that having a director of a school is not unprecedented in the district.

“Both Bayview School and the Whidbey Island Academy have teacher directors,” he said.

The move will save the district some money, McCarthy added.

“Because of our declining enrollment, we really had to think about whether to hire another administrator. We went through several scenarios and decided on this one for the remainder of the year,” he said.

McCarthy said they will review the staffing plan at the end of the year and decide then whether to hire a new principal.

“We want to give this a good chance to work,” McCarthy said.

“There is opportunity in every difficulty,” he said.

Although he couldn’t go into specifics of the investigation, McCarthy said he was ready to say “it was a financial matter.”

“There was probable cause to involve the Island County Sheriff’s Office,” he said.

“The accounting issue was noticed on Jan. 7. On Jan. 25, Mahar ‘disclosed something to me’ and she resigned effective Feb. 2,” he said.

During the hour-long meeting, parents expressed concern about how the district would explain to students that Mahar is no longer their principal.

McCarthy said a letter appropriate for primary age students was read by teachers on Friday that briefly explained that Mahar was no longer working for the district, but she encouraged students to keep doing their best.

“Bernie had a real connection with the kids. We have some big shoes to fill,” McCarthy said.

Several parents said that Mahar was also accessible to them as parents. They wondered if the change in leadership would change things.

Nerison assured the parents that he would be available to them and visible at both schools. He joked that he may be using a golf cart to travel between the Intermediate and Primary schools.

“The key to success is the support of Jan and Val,” Nerison said.

Several parents said that Mahar, who was at the Primary School for 10 years, was very well-liked by both parents and students.

Gina Helmersen, the parent of a kindergartner and fifth-grader said, “Bernie was a special force. She went the extra mile for her students.”

“I hope it doesn’t change, but we will have to wait and see,” she said.

However, McCarthy said that McNeely is up to the task. She will have the students best interests at heart, he said.

McNeely, the former primary physical education teacher, has stepped in frequently when Mahar has been out of town. She has

32 years of teaching experience.

“Never in a million years, did

I think I would be here,” McNeely told the group.

“I am deeply touched and honored the staff has enough confidence in me to be the director,” McNeely said.

“I won’t have the big Bernie responsibilities, they will fall on Eric’s shoulders,” she said.

“The kids can come in and see me on a daily basis. I love it when kids come to the office,” McNeely said.

“We will get through this together,” she said.

News of Mahar’s resignation was made public by the South Whidbey School District in a letter sent to The Record and home with students in early January.

Gayle Saran can be reached at 221-5300 or gsaran@southwhidbeyrecord.com