Staunton City Schools announced today that Donald Rhodes, for personal reasons, voluntarily resigned from his position as principal at Bessie Weller Elementary School.
Effective Monday, October 16, Rich Fletcher, a 17-year educator and administrator in SCS, will step in as principal. Carol Fox is expected to continue in her role as associate principal.
Fletcher joined SCS in 2000 as an assistant principal at R.E. Lee High School. He later served as the assistant principal and principal at Shelburne Middle School before joining central office administration. Most recently, he has served as an instructional supervisor for the school division.
Sandra McGrath, a 16-year math instructor and coach in SCS, has been promoted to Bessie Weller’s school improvement leader to provide additional support with instruction. McGrath started at A.R. Ware Elementary School as a math coach in 2009 and moved to Bessie Weller last year to continue in that capacity.
“I appreciate Mr. Rhodes’ time with SCS and wish him well in any future endeavors he pursues,” said Dr. Garett Smith, Superintendent. “It would be disingenuous for me not to acknowledge that Bessie has had a tough go of it over the last couple of years, and another change in leadership at this time isn’t ideal. However, we have highly experienced, tenacious and caring educators stepping into leadership positions, and a talented team of teachers who made significant strides during the past two academic years. Our intentions and our support for Bessie haven’t changed. We’ll continue to be there for our students and families, and push hard for full accreditation by the end of the year. I have full confidence that we can and will reach that goal.”
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