Several Cd'A schools to have new principals

The principal’s office at multiple Coeur d’Alene schools will have new names on the doors when students return for the start of the new school year.

Jan Beauchamp, former principal of Skyway Elementary, notified the district suddenly the last week of June that she had decided to retire to spend more time with her family. Beauchamp’s exit, another retirement and the opening of a new school sparked a domino-effect of school-level leadership changes.

Prior to Beauchamp’s announcement, Karen Troxel, former principal of Winton Elementary, retired and Bill Rutherford, former principal of Fernan STEM Academy, was lined up to move into the principal position at the district’s new Northwest Expedition Academy — formerly known as the Hayden Lake School — which will open in the fall.

Rutherford accepted the position a month after initially dismissing the idea when the district asked principals to consider moving schools.

“At first I said no because I thought I needed one more year at Fernan to complete the work we started there to become a STEM school,” Rutherford said. “After a month of thinking, I reconsidered, knowing that opening a new school is a once-in-a-career opportunity.”

The Northwest Expedition Academy will stay in the Hayden Lake School until property can be bought to construct a new building. Rutherford said as part of their project-based curriculum, where students can “ask questions, touch and feel their education,” students will take part in developing their new school.

“As part of our academic expedition, the students will be involved with the architects in building a school which best works to educates students. This should be a fun, educational and a real-world exercise for the students,” Rutherford said.

Kathy Livingston, former principal assistant at Atlas Elementary, will replace Rutherford as principal of Fernan. Carrie Shinkel, Atlas’s new principal assistant from Oregon, will replace Livingston.

Rick Kline, former principal of Borah, will act as interim principal of Skyway. Kline’s absence from Borah prompted the promotion of Kristina Davenport from Borah’s instructional coach, to principal.

Skyway stole another educator, this time from Winton. Lisa Hoffman, a Winton Title I teacher and part-time vice principal, accepted the vice principal position at Skyway after Monique English, former Skyway vice principal, left the position at the end of the school year. Winton hired Eileen Blough, a principal assistant in the Spokane School District, to take over as principal.

Jennifer Reyes, a former district instructional coach, will step in as a principal assistant at Winton to make up for the loss of Hoffman. Principal assistant is a position starting this year that’s meant to aid principals in schools too small to qualify for a vice principal.

As part of the position, Reyes will spend time as a principal assistant at two of the smaller elementary schools in the district – Winton and Fernan Elementary. Scott Maben, the district’s communication director, said the district would hire another principal assistant for Borah and Bryan Elementary.

“We’re just making the most of the resources we have in the district,” Maben said.