NEW PALESTINE — Not only will students be dealing with new safety rules and renovations at New Palestine High School when they head back to classes in less than three weeks; they’ll also have a new principal.
Principal Keith Fessler has requested a leave of absence for medical reasons to start the 2020-21 school year, and officials are not sure when he will return. The move has caused a shuffling of leadership positions in the district.
Jim Voelz, the longtime principal at New Palestine Junior High School, will take over as high school principal on a temporary basis starting immediately, Superintendent Lisa Lantrip announced on Tuesday. Craig Moore, who was set to enter his sixth year as an assistant principal at the junior high, will become the interim principal.
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“I trust Mr. Voelz to navigate this difficult situation during a challenging time with grace and exceptional leadership,” Lantrip said.
Fessler, who is confronting colon cancer, is scheduled for surgery next week and said he and his doctors are optimistic for his recovery and return to work.
“The support has been incredibly overwhelming,” Fessler said in an interview Wednesday afternoon, July 15. “It’s been a process, but I’ve learned so much, and my plan is to come back healthy as ever.”
Voelz, who has been the principal at Doe Creek Middle School and at the newer junior high for 18 of his 21 years in the district, said it will be hard leaving his building, teachers, staff and students, but he’ll do what needs to be done to help the district.
“If I have to stay there the full year, I will do it because we have a great leadership team where (we) principals help and support each other, and if this is what the high school needs, I’m on board,” Voelz said.
Three of Voelz’s four children have graduated from the high school and the fourth is a junior, so Voelz takes a lot of pride in the district’s flagship school, he said. Not to mention there are hundreds of students he’s already familiar with who have gone through his junior high.
“I know they have a great leadership team in place there, but I’m exited and I’m going to treat it every single day like I am the principal,” Voelz said.
District communications director Wes Anderson noted administrators thought it was important to have a familiar face and someone they know will be able to work with families as students re-enter the high school during the pandemic
Another complication is construction on the campus as part of the school’s renovation.
“The renovation is a big part of this, especially as we work with social distancing requirements,” Anderson said. “There are some logistical challenges there that have to happen both for COVID-19 and managing this renovation project.”
Voelz has already been through a renovation process at the junior high school, so he knows how to deal with the issues high school students and staff will be facing.
“Our renovation (at the junior high) was on a smaller scale, but I’ve got a lot of experience doing that, and that project turned out really well,” Voelz said.
Moore, who’ll be filling in as principal at the junior high, feels blessed to have been mentored by Voelz. The longtime principal has built a strong culture at New Palestine Junior High, Moore said, and he feels fortunate to inherit a team of educators who are dedicated to their students and to each other.
“I am grateful for the trust of my superintendent, school board, and community to, in the interim, lead this dedicated team of educators,” Moore said.
Additional support will be put in place to help Moore and counselor Amanda Schwyn in the front office, Anderson said. District officials plan to share details about further administrative changes at the junior high as soon as possible.
Right now, they’re looking at educators who have administrative licenses to see if any might be willing to help out as an assistant at the junior high.
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