Five months after buying out the remainder of the contract of its former superintendent and hiring an interim, the Amagansett School District has put its principal on paid administrative leave and made the interim superintendent its interim principal as well.
In October, the district bought out the contract of Seth Turner, who had been superintendent since 2018, and hired Richard Loeschner to fill the role on an interim basis. On Tuesday, the school board confirmed that it had put its principal, Maria Dorr, on leave.
In an email to parents and school staff on March 5, Mr. Loeschner said his additional assignment as principal was necessary “as we work through some issues involving the school principal [Ms. Dorr].”
The board has also voted to assign some acting-principal duties to three teachers, Michael Rodgers, Kelly White, and Shawn Mitchell, who will serve as building leaders on days when Mr. Loeschner is not physically present.
The board has not publicly explained why it assigned Ms. Dorr to paid leave. Mr. Loeschner told The Star that the district is unable to comment on confidential matters involving its employees.
The administrative changes prompted at least 30 parents and teachers to flood into the school board’s meeting Tuesday, equipped with pointed questions over hiring an outside search organization for a new permanent superintendent. Why, many asked, would Amagansett turn to outsiders for help filling a crucial role for which at least three current faculty members are qualified?
“We are opening it up because it opens it up to the whole community, not just the school,” came the reply from Kristen Peterson, the board president. “We branch out because you don’t know who’s going to apply. You want a further reach.”
The board had been poised to spend $8,000 to hire the Eastern Suffolk Board of Cooperative Educational Services to conduct its superintendent search — indeed, even before formally passing the resolution, it seems to have directed Eastern Suffolk BOCES to post the job ad. As of Tuesday night, the listing was appearing on websites such as thejobnetwork.com, topschooljobs.org, and the New York State School Boards Association, with an Eastern Suffolk BOCES email address as the destination for applications and a deadline of April 5.
However, under pressure from Tuesday night’s audience, the board (minus its vice president, Dawn Rana Brophy, who was absent) later voted to table the superintendent-search resolution. Mr. Loeschner said he would phone Eastern Suffolk BOCES to explain.
In comments directed to the school board, Ashley Blackburn, who is co-president, with Mr. Rodgers, of the Amagansett Teachers Association, decried the administrative turnover she said she has seen in her years with the district: Five superintendents, two interim superintendents, and four different principals, all over the course of 21 years, many of them hired from outside the district.
“Why are we in this situation, and will this cycle continue?” she asked. “It’s imperative to consider the voices of parents, teachers, taxpayers, and staff. We urge you to initiate open dialogue with these stakeholders.”
Her comments were echoed by at least six other speakers, none of whom identified themselves at the public meeting.
“Richard, no offense, but you’re a unicorn from the external world,” one woman told Mr. Loeschner, whose leadership style has been well received since he arrived in Amagansett, but who has made it clear that he is only there temporarily. “But I think [hiring] internally would make more sense from the very beginning. Richard, you could start training someone tomorrow. Let’s give that a shot first . . . with someone who has a track record of being really great.”
Speakers also pressed for the interim superintendent/principal and the board to commit to a transparent process that would involve interviews with a hiring committee including parents and teachers. Mr. Loeschner and the board members agreed.
“We’re thinking of breaking it down more, into smaller stakeholder groups,” Ms. Peterson said. “You’re going to be getting a survey to fill out. We’ll compile all that information. We want an applicant pool — we’re not going to just look at one person. . . . We are weighing all of our best options when it comes to filling this position.”