News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sisters High School principal Dennis Dempsey will take a half-time position with the regional Education Service District as its Director of Technology, starting October 1.
Dempsey will continue half-time as Sisters High School principal for the remainder of the 1998-99 school year, with a team of teachers and administrators taking on many of the day-to-day responsibilities of the principal.
Dempsey's position with the ESD is expected to evolve into a full-time role next year. As Director of Technology, Dempsey will develop programs for bringing technology into the classroom in schools throughout Central Oregon.
"It's an opportunity to work with technology in a much larger way and maybe have a regional effect," Dempsey told The Nugget.
Dempsey said he had been looking for a while into taking a different career path.
"It's a good transition," he said. "It gives me an opportunity to do something I'm really interested in and get a chance to move from a building principal to a central office setting.
"It's been 19 years (as a principal)," Dempsey said. "It's time."
The Director of Technology position seemed almost custom made to fit Dempsey's 20-year interest in instructional technology, he noted.
The timing of the change is also good for the school district, according to superintendent Steve Swisher.
Swisher noted that, if Dempsey had found another job and resigned in May or June, the district would be at the back of the line in the search for a new principal. As it is, the district will begin looking in January or February, Swisher said.
Swisher said the district's lofty academic goals will shape the search for a new principal.
"I'd really be looking for a strong instructional leader for a replacement," Swisher said.
According to Swisher, that leader would have a strong background in using testing and other data to gauge academic achievement and develop programs to boost student performance.
The district will seek "a good communicator who spends a lot of time and focus on academic programs as opposed to facilities" or other aspects of the school experience, Swisher said.
While Dempsey will remain at the helm part-time through the rest of the year, a "leadership team" is being assembled to take on some of the administrative responsibilities.
According to Swisher, Lora Nordquist will lead curriculum instruction and staff development. Dean of Students Bob Macauley will take on more responsibility for discipline.
Mary Flande, the athletic director, will assume additional responsibilities for sports programs.
Dan Saraceno will do more in the area of student services such as counseling and alternative programs.
Swisher thinks the changes will be good for Dempsey and the ESD and for the district and the new leadership team.
"Is it all going to be 100 percent smooth? No," Swisher said. "There's still going to be some glitches, but when you weigh the whole picture, it's worth it."
Swisher anticipates some problems stemming from lag time in making decisions in such things as "tough calls in discipline" if Dempsey is out of the building.
"It's important to understand that Dennis is our principal; he's the principal through the year," Swisher said.
However, Swisher said, in Dempsey's absence, "the (leadership) team will assume the authority of the principal."
If the ESD position does not turn out to be full-time next year, Dempsey said he might return to the district in some part-time role - but not as principal.
While Dempsey hopes the technology position will flourish, he said he will miss the contact with students.
"If I move to full time, I won't be working with kids directly and when you've done this for 25 years, that's a big change," he said.
Dempsey is in his seventh year as principal at Sisters High School.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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