At their regular Board meeting of May 27, the Board of Directors of the Lopez Island School District approved the hiring of a new elementary principal and district superintendent. Dr. Linda Martin, currently principal of Chain Lake Elementary, in the Monroe School District, will assume responsibility for the two positions beginning July 1. The District has been engaged in an extensive search process for new administrators since the announced retirements of Principal Roland MacNichol and Superintendent Bill Evans earlier this Spring.

The search revolved around a position posting that divided the District administrative responsibilities into three half-time positions of Elementary Principal, Secondary Principal, and Superintendent. In action earlier this month, the school Board hired Marc Vermeire into the Secondary Principal position, serving the middle and high school. Dr. Martin has been assigned to the leadership of not only the elementary school, but the Lopez District as well.

Dr. Linda Martin is a recent graduate of the educational leadership doctoral program at Seattle Pacific University, and a 1999 graduate of the prestigious Danforth program at the University of Washington where she received her principal credentials. An elementary principal for ten years, Martin has also served in several capacities at the district-level in her work in the Monroe School District, including serving on the negotiation teams, serving as the Highly Capable Program Administrator and the District Staff Development Coordinator, and leading the District’s Young Author program. She comes to the Lopez Schools with very strong references from former supervisors, students, and parents.

“Linda is an excellent leader and manager – she gets results… and operates with integrity and learns quickly,” says her current Superintendent.

Dr. Martin assumes the leadership of the Lopez Schools at a time when, like other Washington State and San Juan County school districts, significantly reduced state funding and declining enrollments are forcing districts to tighten belts and struggle to preserve programs and staff. Indeed, the position into which Dr. Martin will step a Lopez is a direct result of budget considerations as the district chose to reduce the Superintendent position to half-time beginning in the Fall of 2009, in an early December 2008 budget decision to begin the process of reducing the overall district budget to meet the demands of shrinking resources in the 2009-10 school year. Current Superintendent Bill Evans and District Finance Director Joan Hartjes have been leading the District through difficult budgeting decisions with a determined focus upon making reductions as far away from the classrooms as possible. One of few districts in the state that did not lay-off continuing certificated teachers, the district will be continuing the budget process through the end of July, when all small-school budgets are due. Martin will also take over the leadership of several capital projects in which the District is concurrently engaged, including re-roofing the entire campus, installation of new HVAC systems, resurfacing the running track, developing a storm water run-off irrigation system, and implementing a comprehensive technology up-grade campus-wide. Throughout all these challenges and opportunities, the new Superintendent will be responsible for maintaining and nurturing the impressive reputation the Lopez Schools have earned for academic excellence, with 100% graduation rates, high WASL scores in 10th grade, consistent 80% or above college or other post-secondary attendance, consistent high state honors for academic athletic awards, and a laudable history of acceptance at prestigious colleges and universities by Lopez graduates.

The District is planning a welcoming reception in the near future to provide students, parents and community members an opportunity to meet the District’s new administrators.

“We are absolutely delighted to secure the leadership of somebody so highly qualified as Linda Martin,” stated Superintendent Evans. “I predict she will lead this amazing district to even greater heights with her quiet strength and unflinching commitment to young people.”