Following the resignation of previous superintendent Dr. Anthony Lewis, the board appointed Dr. Jeanice Swift to fill the position as interim superintendent.
Starting on Sept. 30, Swift will apply 36 years of prior educational and leadership experiences to Lawrence Public Schools. Swift said she is determined to work closely with the community to start a new chapter for the district.
“This is a community that cares very deeply about our children and a quality educational experience,” Swift said. “No one knows better our strengths, challenges and our opportunities for improvement than our students, our staff, our parents and families.”
Although Swift’s extensive experience was a significant factor in her hiring, her background isn’t entirely uncontroversial, according to school board president Kelly Jones. Preceding Swift’s departure from her previous position in Ann Arbor, Michigan, their district faced backlash after a bus aide repeatedly slapped and restrained a special education student, leaving the student’s mother left unaware for five weeks CBS reported.
Despite the fact that Swift’s resignation followed this incident, she claims that it is not directly related to her resignation. Swift emphasized her openness to answering questions on the issue with any concerned community members, as well as working to ensure similar incidents will not take place in Lawrence.
“Our job is to work through that and make sure that the supports are in place so that it hopefully doesn’t happen again,” Swift said.
Despite this incident, the board unanimously approved Swift to fulfill the interim superintendent position. Throughout the hiring process, school board president Kelly Jones spoke with members of Swift’s previous district as well as consulting local teachers and community members to ensure Swift would be qualified. Thus, she is hopeful that the district will benefit under Swift’s leadership.
“I hope that students have the most positive experience they can have in our schools,” Jones said. “I hope that teachers begin to feel supported by the district…and have confidence in the district and in our superintendent.”
As interim superintendent, Swift will only fulfill the responsibilities of superintendent until next June. Meanwhile, the district plans to conduct a national search for a permanent superintendent starting this fall.
Although the board is interested in hiring a firm to assist with this process, Jones stressed the importance of community’s opinion when selecting a permanent superintendent.
“We want to include as many voices in the process because it’s an essential leadership role for Lawrence public schools and the city as a whole,” Jones said.
