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Two principals bid farewell to Pottstown, Mercury 6-23-11
POTTSTOWN — While the future of some of Pottstown's five elementary may remain unclear, at least one thing is certain — two of the principals in those buildings will be in different districts when the children return to school in September.
The school board has reluctantly accepted the resignations of Edgewood Elementary Principal Angela Tuck and Elizabeth Barth Elementary Principal Robert Giering.
Both have secured new positions south of Pottstown and will be replaced by interim principals in the coming school year.
Tuck will become the principal of the Swarthmore Rutledge School, a public elementary school in the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District in Delaware County.
"It is among the few public elementary schools in Pennsylvania to receive a distinguished GreatSchools Rating of 10 out of 10," according to the web site greatschools.org
Giering will be moving on to Uwchlan Hills Elementary School in the Downingtown School District.
By coincidence, that school also is "among the few public elementary schools in Pennsylvania to receive a distinguished GreatSchools Rating of 10 out of 10," according to the web site greatschools.org
Both said they will miss Pottstown.
"It's been an honor and a privilege to be the principal of Edgewood Elementary School," Tuck said of the post she has held for 10 years, after working in the Owen J. Roberts School District.
"It was definitely a hard decision to make, but I needed to make it," Tuck said.
She also made a parting pitch for retaining her school as the school board deliberates which one, if any, to close.
"I'm going to say definitely keep Edgewood open, it's a fantastic school, has a wonderful courtyard in the middle of it and our students had the opportunity to grow vegetables in our courtyard," said Tuck.
She said "it definitely was hard to say goodbye, I shed lots of tears."
Some were undoubtedly also shed recently when the staff at the school got together to say goodbye.
"I'm going to miss that smile," board member Polly Weand told Tuck during the June 16 school board meeting.
Both Tuck and Giering were recognized by the board that night.
"They are both outstanding people, who have great character and I have seen them grow in their roles as leaders and they will be missed," Assistant Superintendent Jeff Sparagana said that night.
Giering has been at Barth for 6˝ years, after working in the Reading School District, which he described as "a very quick 6˝ years."
"I'll mostly miss the students," Giering said insisting that despite the fact that nearly every principal says their students are the best that "Barth students are the best."
Running the 600-student school in Downingtown is "a new challenge," Giering said, but said it was no less challenging than taking a school with a high poverty level and meeting the ever-escalating annual yearly progress benchmarks of the federal No Child Left Behind law.
"That's a real accomplishment," he said.
"But it's not all about the numbers," said Giering. "I'm also really proud of how all of Barth implemented the many types of full inclusion for our students with complex support requirements."
"We've gone from having those (special education/life skills) students totally segregated down the path to where all those students are included in the general classroom for part of the day, or even the whole day," Giering said.
Not only is it good for the students now included, it is also good for the general education students, Giering said. "It's like real life. After high school, everyone's included."
Eyeing these accomplishments, Giering said "it is with a lot of mixed emotions that I'm stepping down from Barth."
Giering said there were several factors that went into his decision to begin exploring his options, including that "there was talk about the elementary principals going to a 10-month employee status and I have a young family and a lot of responsibilities."
As for his successor, Giering said "I guess if I had one piece of advice, it would be to have your 'default position' be yes. so when someone asks you if that's possible, or if you can do something, say 'yes.'"
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