Top posts will be changing at several WV schools
The faces monitoring the hallways of several West Valley schools will look different next year.
On Wednesday the district announced several principal changes for the 2005-06 school year, including new principals at both West Valley High School and Centennial Middle School.
Gary Neal, the vice principal at WVHS, will fill the position left vacant by Gene Sementi, who was awarded an assistant superintendent post for the district last month.
“It was a bit of a surprise,” Neal said. “It was something I was hoping for, but I didn’t think it was going happen this fast.”
Neal came to West Valley from Spokane Public Schools, where he was a teacher and administrator for several years.
“I was looking for a smaller school district and a smaller school,” Neal said. “I was fortunate enough to have found it here at West Valley.”
Neal will take over in July when Sementi moves up to the district administration office.
Pam Francis, who has been the principal at Seth Woodard Elementary School for 14 years, will take the principal post at Centennial Middle School. The current principal, Tim Ames, announced last month that he accepted a job as the superintendent of the Wellpinit School District.
Larry Bush, who has been dividing his time between Spokane Valley High School and West Valley City School, two of the district’s alternative programs, will become the full-time principal at Spokane Valley High School.
Tom Moore, the director of the West Valley Outdoor Learning Center will take on the principal job at City School.
Other assignment changes include the following:
Cleve Penberthy, the former principal at WVHS who has been on sabbatical from the district will return as principal at Contract Based Education; Jeff Smith, currently the principal at CBE, will be the principal at Seth Woodard; Robyn Davis, an assistant principal at SVHS will become an assistant principal at WVHS; Kerri Barsness, the assistant principal at City School will take the assistant principal position at SVHS; and Connie Kliewer will become the director of the Millwood Early Childhood Education Center/Special Services.