By Philip Sean Curran
Staff Writer
Princeton School district business administrator Stephanie Kennedy will retire at the end of February, making her the third high-ranking member of Superintendent of Schools Stephen C. Cochrane’s administration leaving in 2019.
Kennedy joins assistant Superintendent Lewis Goldstein and Princeton High School Principal Gary Snyder as part of an exodus from the senior level staff.
Kennedy, a district employee since January 1998, will depart in the midst of the budget-making season. Her last day is scheduled for Feb.28, as she handed in her official notice on Dec.10.
In a phone interview on Dec.11, Kennedy said she was “off to greener pastures” and that she would be working in the private sector.
“It’s time,” she said. “I’m ready.”
Kennedy began her tenure in the district as the assistant business administrator and eventually moved her way to the top spot.
Her announcement came a week after Snyder said he is retiring at the end of June.
Snyder, the leader of the high school since 2003, officially announced on Dec. 3 his plans to leave. He joins assistant Superintendent Lewis Goldstein, who is leaving at the end of January.
“It is my intention to retire from the position as principal at the conclusion of this academic year,” Snyder wrote in a letter to parents, students and others. “This time of year, the steamy days of June are probably only in the thoughts of high school seniors and retiring principals, but we will each keep our focus on the work and learning before us in the coming months.”
Snyder could not be reached for comment this week.
As for finding a replacement, the district will start advertising for the opening in January, Goldstein said on Dec. 10.
“The hope is always that you would like to get somebody on board before Gary leaves so they can sit down and have that transition time before Gary leaves,” he said.
Snyder was hired in Princeton in August of 2003, previously having worked as a principal at a high school in Massachusetts. In his tenure, Princeton High School instituted reforms to start classes later, switched to a new rotating schedule model and kept its high academic standing. His salary for the current school year is $199,887.
“Gary did a great job at the high school, and we’re sorry to see him go,” said Princeton Board of Education President Patrick Sullivan on Dec.10. “He’ll be missed.”
Yet the school had issues with chronic student absenteeism, and was investigated in 2012 by the state Department of Education.
The state did not levy sanctions against the district, but said in a report that it could not conclude for certain whether students from 2009 to 2012 had met attendance requirements to graduate.
The high school also has had to battle with overcrowding. Enrollment at the end of November stood at 1,596 students, or 173 students over capacity.
As for his next steps, Snyder did not specify what he planned to do with himself after leaving Princeton.
“A few years ago, with the support of family, friends, and faculty I embarked on a journey to reignite my zest for learning and life by strengthening important relationships, enrolling in a doctoral program, and renewing my faith,” wrote Snyder, who in May of 2016 went on a leave of absence that saw him miss the rest of that academic year. “I am inspired by the young people who graduate from PHS to do amazing things in this world and I feel the calling to also take a risk, follow my passions and see where else I can serve others. While I have a plan, I don’t know the specifics; maybe I’ll be teaching, writing poetry, volunteering, or going on long bike rides.”
