School board to fill vacancies left by principals and superintendent

Posted: May 10, 2010 6:34 PM by Ariel Wesler

Budget cuts aren't the only concern now for the Templeton School Board.

The superintendent recently announced she is stepping down. Deborah Bowers has served as superintendent for the last four years. Two principals will also leave at the end of the school year.

Deborah Bowers has been in the driving seat for the Templeton Unified School District for the last four years. Now, the superintendent says she is moving on.

"The timing is a little unfortunate with all that, but it's not related to the budget at all," Bowers said.

And she's not alone. The principals at Templeton High and Vineyard Elementary are also leaving at the end of the school year, but Templeton's School Board President says he's confident the changes won't affect student achievement.

"We've got some real talented people with administrative credentials that have kinda been in the wings anyway, so it's a good opportunity to determine whether or not that's a good promotion for them," said David La Rue.

The current board proposal will require some musical chairs, though. The Templeton Middle School principal will take over at the high school and the assistant principal at the high school will fill his position. That alone could save the district thousands.

"There might be a lower cost because of less senior in the position," La Rue said.

The district's already looking at $1 million in cuts over the next year. So far, they've planned out about $800,000 and now on top of all that, they have to search for a new leader.

"It could take a few months or it could take a year to get the qualified person. We won't just fill it for the sake of filling it," La Rue said.

Board members will meet later this month to decide whether to fill Bower's position through an interim superintendent or wait to hire a new one.

The superintendent search can cost around $30,000, which is beyond the district's budget. However, school officials are trying to get some help with the search from the county board of education.

The pay for the Templeton Superintendent starts at around $125,000.