Leaders of the Wiscasset School Department are hoping for some stability next year after the community was divided last fall over the firing of the principal of the local middle-high school.
The district has made various leadership decisions and changes recently, including an extension of the contract of Superintendent Kim Andersson and the hiring of Interim Principal Sarah Hubert of Wiscasset Middle High School to the position on a full-time basis.
However, the district is still contending with some turnover, with the recent resignation of the principal of Wiscasset Elementary School.
Andersson came under fire from some in the community last fall when she recommended the firing of Gina Stevens, the principal of Wiscasset Middle High School, and the school board ultimately approved it.
Stevens, who had been permanently appointed to the role less than a year earlier, had violated numerous protocols, including installing a camera in a food pantry closet without permission, according to an investigation by an attorney. But some staff and community members spoke out against the decision, defending Stevens and singling Andersson out for criticism.
The Wiscasset School Board made the decision to extend Andersson’s contract by five years at its May 14 meeting, as was first reported by the The Wiscasset Newspaper.
Andersson said in a statement that she hopes the school board’s decision to keep her around for five more years will bring continuity to the district, which has seen a high level of superintendent turnover since 2014, with six superintendents in the past decade.
“This decision will allow the school department to experience leadership continuity after decades of high Superintendent turnover which I believe will allow our schools to reach their greatest potential for excellence,” Andersson said. “I am also happy to be able to give back to Wiscasset since Wiscasset invested in my education while I was teaching here and that education helped make it possible for me to be a superintendent. It is a very good feeling, indeed.”
The board also appointed Hubert to the permanent principal role on May 14.
However, the district will now have to fill the position of Amy Bayha, the principal of Wiscasset Elementary School, who will be resigning at the end of the school year, after her recent efforts to purchase a home in the area fell through, according to The Wiscasset Newspaper. She currently lives in Kennebunk with her family.
As of May 14, the salaries for Hubert and Andersson had not been finalized. School board Chair Jason Putnam couldn’t be reached for comment.
Jules Walkup is a Report for America corps member. Additional support for this reporting is provided by BDN readers.
