'Aggressive' Timeline to Replace Doyon

The school system is working on an "aggressive" time table to ensure that Scotts Ridge Middle School has a new leader by July 1, outgoing Principal Marie Doyon's last day on the job.

Doyon gave the required 30 days notice, Director of Personnel Karen Dewing said Monday, but her departure only gives the school system a couple months to find a replacement since the incoming principal would also need to give notice to his or her current employer.

The position, which has a salary range of $137,320 to $152,601, is already posted on the Ridgefield Public Schools Web site as well as other oft-searched teacher job boards in the state.

School officials seek a proactive candidate with passion, energy, administrative experience in a similar district and an understanding of middle schoolers, Superintendent Deborah Low said.

"Middle school is certainly a special time of transition and change and going from young person to a young adult," Low said, "and we need somebody that enjoys that age and understands that age."

As applications begin arriving through the RPS site, the next step on the school system's end is to form an interview committee comprised of administrators, teachers, Board of Education members and representatives from the Parent Teacher Association, Dewing said. She hopes to finalize committee membership by April 16, the Friday before spring break.

Then Dewing and Low will collect and screen resumes throughout April, hopefully coming up with a well-qualified crop of applicants to bring before the interview committee for a few days worth of interviews in early May.

Ridgefield representatives will make site visits to the workplaces of the top one or two candidates, Dewing said, and then Low will make a recommendation to the Board of Education. The school board interviews the candidate in executive session and votes on hiring the person in public.

If all goes smoothly, a candidate will accept Ridgefield's job offer by the end of May.