Peekskill Tabs New Superintendent of Schools
The Peekskill Board of Education approved the appointment of James Willis as the district’s next superintendent of schools during its school board meeting on Tuesday, April 12. The appointment is effective July 11.
“At the beginning of the search process, we asked our community to identify the qualities that were critically important for our next superintendent to possess,” remarked Peekskill City School District Board President Michael Simpkins. He also said the public identified that they wanted a leader who is “accessible, a visionary and a strong administrator.”
“In James Willis, our board has found a leader for Peekskill who possesses all these qualities and whose experience and talents make him ideally suited to lead our district in these challenging times,” stated Simpkins.
Willis is currently the superintendent of schools for the Utica City School District. Prior to the Utica district, he was assistant superintendent for human resources in the South Country Central School District, and assistant superintendent for human resources and administration with the South Orangetown Central School District.
“We are confident that Jim Willis is the right person to lead us in bringing to fruition the goals and expectations that we have set forth in our 2011-2012 Educational Plan and budget, on which we are already collaborating,” Simpkins stated. “Together, we will design the best possible educational future for Peekskill’s children.”
The Peekskill schools are currently under the direction of Interim Superintendent Dr. Lorenzo Licopoli.
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