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A group of Gig Harbor families is considering taking legal action if the Peninsula School District continues with its plan to re-assign principals and assistant principals at nearly half of its 17 schools鈥攊ncluding two high schools, three middle schools, and three elementary schools, to different schools effective July 1.

In an email to families on April 10, District Superintendent Krestin Bahr explained the practice of periodically reassigning principals to different schools is a standard approach implemented by other districts nationwide. She said the move is designed to bring new ideas and approaches to address unique school challenges, help expand principals’ leadership skills and experiences, ensure all schools benefit from talented principals, and strengthen connections between schools and promote consistent practices across the district.

Minter Elementary families concerned moves will affect students

However, families at Minter Elementary, concerned about the re-assignment of their school’s principal, Todd Hering, painted a different picture and said they are considering several options to stop the re-assignment plan.

“We’re trying to gather information from anonymous staff members, we’re doing research, we have a lot of articles on why schools need stable leadership,” Minter Elementary PTA President Jessica Gamble shared.

She said the organized group has also started a petition and has consulted an attorney who specializes in litigation against school districts.

“The kids and parents are devastated,” Gamble said. “We’re deeply concerned about how this impacts our kids’ education moving forward.”

Peninsula School District Superintendent explains strategy to families

In her email to families, Bahr explained their re-assignment plan and cited findings in a report sponsored by the Wallace Foundation, an education-based philanthropy, and written by education researchers at Vanderbilt University, North Carolina State University, and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Bahr explained the findings showed districts that rotate leaders strategically, provide mentoring, and align roles to skill-building are more likely to retain effective principals, strengthen school climate, and boost student achievement.

鈥淲e’re confident that our principals’ wealth of experience and dedication will continue fostering environments where students and staff thrive,” Bahr said in her email.

In turn, 成人X站 Newsradio found the report also said replacing an above-average principal with a below-average principal results in an additional, almost three months of math learning and 2.7 months of reading learning each year in that school. Minter Elementary community members, like Gamble, are worried about a potentially lesser-performing principal or a lesser-experienced assistant principal taking over for their principal.

“Schools are not businesses, they are communities,” Gamble said. “They need leaders who know their staff, know their families, in order to handle the problems that come up.”

The district said Principal Hering will be reassigned as an administrator at Harbor Ridge Middle School and that they made that decision with careful consideration based on Hering’s expertise and experience in trauma-informed practices and student advocacy. At Minter, Hering served a school community that included a little more than a 40% low-income student population. In their email to families, they explained they will rely on Hering to address challenges related to harassment, intimidation, and bullying (HIB) while fostering a supportive environment at his new school that serves about half as many lower-income students.

成人X站 Newsradio reaches out for comment

成人X站 Newsradio asked Peninsula School Board member Jennifer Butler, who represents District 2, where Minter Elementary is located, for a response to the issue. Instead, Butler forwarded our questions to Bahr and district spokesperson Jake Voss.

Voss sent 成人X站 Newsradio the April 10 email the district sent to families explaining their decision.

In response to our question for reaction to a potential lawsuit, Voss said in a statement: “Peninsula School District is committed to providing the best learning environment for our students. We make personnel decisions with the best interests of staff and students in mind and in compliance with District initiatives and legal requirements. We are unaware of any pending litigation around the transfer of administrators and remain focused on the education of our students.”

Gamble is hopeful the district and Minter families can continue to work together to prevent Hering from leaving his current principal role.

“Ideally, I’d like to see principals who are thriving at a school stay put and I’d like to see the district support, coach, and if necessary, remove other leaders that are not doing well in their school,” Gamble said.

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