Re-1J school staff changes reported

    Two resignations were recently approved and three re-assignments announced for Holyoke School District Re-1J.
    Sandra Rahe has accepted a new job as principal for the Revere school in Ovid, resigning her position as director of facilities, operations and transportation in the local district.
    Additionally, the school board accepted the resignation of high school English as a Second Language teacher Stephanie Chaney.
    Approval of the resignations occurred at a brief board meeting Tuesday, July 17, which preceded a board retreat.
    During the retreat, Superintendent Kyle Stumpf also announced  three re-assignments for the upcoming school year. He acknowledged appreciation to the three who are willing to help out the district and accepted their new roles with open minds.
    John Baumgartner has been named athletic and activities director, leaving his third-grade classroom.
    Tarah Priddy will move from second grade to third, and Cyndi Bahler will serve as an interventionist and will help with English Language Learners at the elementary school. Bahler had previously taught kindergarten.
    Stumpf emphasized that they will be monitoring class sizes. Currently, the kindergarten class looks to have 35 students, with 36 in the second-grade class.
    Because of these projected numbers, the plan is to have only two sections of each of those grades, rather than three. The numbers will be monitored closely to determine if they need to consider other options, added Stumpf.