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A portrait of Larry Leverett when he led the Plainfield schools. |
Two rumors about the Plainfield Public Schools have been circulating for weeks now, and enough people have spoken to me about them that I've concluded it's time to put them out there.
Note, these are rumors -- not confirmed facts -- but, if true, their impact on the Plainfield Public Schools, the district's students, teachers and other staff, as well as the community would be huge.
The first concerns the tenure of Superintendent Anna Belin Pyles, who began taking short leaves of absence for 'personal' reasons in February, and now no longer is mentioned.
Dr. Debra Sheard, the assistant superintendent for educational services is now listed on the District's website as the "acting superintendent".
Initially, I was hearing buzz from employees that Belin-Pyles would be stepping down. I have not heard anything official and certainly not a press release from the district. But, when a parent got up and spoke about the matter at a Februry meeting -- without any denial by the Board or staff, the rumor took on more substance.
The second rumor was that Dr. Larry Leverett, who was superintendent from 1985 through 2003, is being approached about being an interim superintendent while the Board of Ed conducts a search for a new superintendent.
Many regard his tenure as the "golden days" in the District.
One thing I will say for sure: Larry was a ball of energy (I hope he still is) and adept at at morale building with staff, and with the community.
I remember very clearly his recruiting me to a panel of staff and community members to work on a vision for an alliance between community arts organizations and the school district.
I also remember that he orchestrated the campaign for the bond issue which made possible the new Washington Community School. It was the only school bond issue that passed in the entire state that year.
Larry would be a most impressive interim.
All I can say is: Stay tuned.
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