Monday marked the changing of the guard in Staunton. The Staunton School Board welcomed three new members and a new superintendent, all of them welcome the chance for Staunton to get a fresh start.
Missing funds, failed audits and the forced resignation of the last superintendent are now a distant memory for Staunton Public Schools. The division's new top administrator, Dr. Linda Reviea, joins a new board, which praises her hands-on leadership style.
Staunton welcomed Linda Reviea with a once-in-a-generation storm. It even put her to work a day early, helping set up a cooling station and shelter at Bessie Weller Elementary School.
Reviea said, "I thought it might have been when it was a snowstorm that I might meet most of the emergency services staff. But the heat wave and power outage gave me a great opportunity to spend several hours with them and getting to know them. And I know that's going to be beneficial to the division."
Reviea takes the reins at the same time half the Staunton School Board turns over. Two of the three new members were sworn in, just minutes before their first official meeting but they have been in the loop for months.
Robert Boyle of the Staunton School Board said, "We were involved very closely with the hiring process with the new superintendent, which was enormously helpful, to develop the confidence we have in the new superintendent."
The new board and new administrator mark a welcome fresh start for Staunton schools after a forgettable year of financial miscues and the ouster of the past superintendent.
Boyle stated, "There was a lot of controversy and some conflict. But we are ready to move forward, and the three of us are thinking in the same direction, hopefully we're going to bring a high degree of unity to the board."
Also Monday, Erik Curren was sworn in as the newest member of the Staunton City Council. Veteran council member Lacy King was chosen to serve another term as they city's mayor.
