Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Search for permanent position paused

 

Austin Public Schools announced that it has named Austin High School assistant principal Matt Schmit as interim principal of AHS.

In a press release from Superintendent Dr. Joey Page on Tuesday, the school also announced that Neveln Elementary Principal Ryan Barnick would join AHS administration and current English Language Coordinator Lynn Hemann will become interim principal at Neveln for the remainder of the school year.

The new roles will begin following the holiday break with a goal to complete the transition on or before January 17.

Current interim AHS Principal Dr. Sheri Allen will remain a part of the transition plan through the second semester.

Austin Public Schools began a reorganization process in January of 2022 that would better align the goals of the district’s administrative team with curriculum, instruction and assessment goals.

“As part of that reorganization in February 2022, we began a comprehensive search for Austin High School’s next principal,” Page said in Tuesday’s letter. “To find the best candidates for the school and the district, we needed to exceed stakeholder expectations and our own commitment to improvement. Unfortunately, the search was unsuccessful, and Dr. Sheri Allen was hired as interim principal.”

Page went on to say that the interview team has been working the last two months to find the ideal candidate for the AHS principal position. However, Page said that he has decided to move forward with the interim position in order to provide the space and time necessary to hire a principal.

“I want to thank the more than 25-member interview team that has been involved in helping identify Austin High School’s next principal,” Page said. “I also want to thank the Neveln Elementary School and district Multilanguage Learner staff for their professionalism and support of one another through this mid-year transition.”