There’s been a shake-up of administration roles at Healdsburg Elementary School (HES).
Seasoned administrator and former Yulupa School principal Sue Simon will step in as HES’ interim principal until the end of the school year while former principal Stephanie Feith is on a leave of absence. Set to return in March, Feith will not reprise her role as HES principal and will instead work in the district office with elementary curriculum.
While Healdsburg Unified School District (HUSD) Superintendent Chris Vanden Heuvel said he could not discuss the reasons for Feith’s departure, he did say he saw Simon as the top choice for the interim role.
“I can’t discuss personnel-related issues. I can tell you we’re moving forward with Sue in the position now,” Vanden Heuvel said. “She comes highly recommended. I spoke with a number of folks who had worked with her and she seemed to be the top person around. So I contacted her, interviewed her in person and she just seemed to be a great fit.”
Vanden Heuvel announced Simon’s role earlier this month in a letter to the HES community.
Simon started the job on Feb. 19. She has been an educator for 37 years and previously worked in the Bennett Valley School District in Santa Rosa at the TK-3 Yulupa School.
In the same letter Vanden Heuvel said of the personnel change, “Stephanie Feith is currently on leave and will return to HUSD in March where she will work on elementary curriculum in the district office. We are grateful for Ms. Feith’s service and commitment to the students of Healdsburg Elementary School/Healdsburg Charter School.”
Simon is set to serve as principal until the end of the school year, at which time the district will look to hire someone permanently for the position. “Technically she’s retired so she is just filling the gap for us,” Vanden Heuvel said. “We are in the hiring process for getting a principal for next year. We’re interviewing this week.”
When asked if it is difficult finding applicants in a tight job market, Vanden Heuvel said while it can be hard, they expect to find a deep pool of applicants.
“We have a pretty good applicant pool, although it is not always easy. Sonoma County has a 2.8 percent unemployment rate, which is perhaps the lowest ever, so job markets are tough for employers, but I do not think that is going to be the case for this particular position,” he said. “We’re hitting it early and trying to garner a lot of attention on state-wide periodicals as well as Internet postings.”
Simon said she was not surprised to be offered the post since it is common for retired administrators to fill in where districts need help.
“I retired five school years ago, so I have stepped into districts to help when they have expected or unexpected openings. There are a lot of retired administrators but we help out as we can,” she said.
Prior to Feith’s current leave of absence, she had some time out of the office in late 2018, however, the Tribune couldn’t confirm whether she was out sick or on leave. Feith was the HES principal for nine years and before that taught first grade at the school for several years. Vanden Heuvel said elementary assessment and curriculum work will constitute Feith’s duties at the district.
“They do a lot of work around elementary curriculum and assessment and things like that so she will be lending a hand here at the office,” he said.
Simon said she is excited to be at HES and enjoys the friendly and respectful atmosphere.
“Each school has its own unique character and climate. There is a good sense of community here, a nice parent presence and a great energy. The kids are kind and respectful,” she said. “I didn’t know her (Stephanie) and I didn’t know much about Healdsburg but the district has assisted me in getting started.”
Vanden Heuvel said they hope to arrange some “coffee with the principal” events at the school in the near future in order for the community to meet and get to know Simon.
He said of her time as principal so far, “She is doing a great job. It’s fun getting to watch her embrace the role, getting to the know the staff. She knew what needed to be done very quickly … so I’ve just been very appreciative of her.”
