District shuffles deck to fill principal positions District shuffles deck to fill principal positions (May 14, 2004)

Gunn principal to lead Paly, assistant principal promoted

by Alexandria Rocha

The search for a permanent Palo Alto High School principal -- a quest that has lasted nearly two years -- is finally over.

The Palo Alto Unified School District conducted a national search for the position, before finding the right candidate in their own backyard.

Scott Laurence, the current principal of Gunn High School, will assume Paly's head administrator position. Gunn's current assistant principal, Noreen Likins, will move up the ladder at Gunn. Both will begin their new jobs July 1.

"It's a huge plus to have local people who have actually worked at the schools," said school board member Mandy Lowell. "Both schools aren't going to go through the six-month learning curve."

Until now, Paly's principal situation had been up in the air since former principal Fred Dreier unexpectedly left the school in August, 2002 -- a week before classes began.

The district got lucky when Sandra Pearson, a retired and respected former principal with the district, stepped up to fill the vacant spot in the interim.

"Sandra took over for the school while we were supposed to hire a principal," Lowell said.

But it was well known Pearson would leave in July, 2004

To prepare for the inevitable transition, the district hired Bill Attea, a private search consultant, and formed a search committee made up of teachers, staff and parents. The district, along with its search committee and Attea, launched an intensive recruitment campaign and nearly hired someone last month.

Lowell said that candidate pulled out of the hiring process when his current district offered a package he apparently couldn't refuse. About that same time, both Laurence and Likins had started to put their feelers out for other job possibilities.

"I have a tendency every four years to get interested in new opportunities," said Laurence, 47, who has been with the district for 20 years, including a stint as Paly's assistant principal. Once he shared his thoughts with district officials, Laurence was offered the job as head administrator of Paly. He'll return July 1, after leaving the school four years ago to become Gunn's principal.

Laurence hopes his experience at both schools will create a closer district.

Likins, 59, has a similar story. She was approached about a position with another school district, but after asking Palo Alto district officials for a recommendation was offered Laurence's position.

On Thursday, Likins said she is most excited about "the challenge of a new job."

In a statement released Thursday, the district's superintendent, Mary Frances Callan, said she is thankful that circumstances allowed the district to tap into its own pool of employees.

"Through our search, we know that talented people are often recruited by other districts," she said. "We wanted to ensure that our own talented people were presented with growth opportunities right here in our district."

Both Laurence and Likins have long backgrounds with the district. Laurence started teaching with the district in 1984, and Likins started out as an administrator at Gunn in 1998.

Alexandria Rocha can be e-mailed at arocha@paweekly.com

E-mail a friend a link to this story.