Winlock seeking new WMES principal after position was eliminated last year

The Winlock School District has announced their intent to seek a new elementary school principal after budget cuts prompted them to eliminate the position last year.

Announced during the April 16 District Board meeting, Superintendent Shannon Criss, who has been acting as elementary school principal in the interim, said it has become necessary to fill the position and it is the district’s intent to soon begin soliciting applications.

“That will not just be an elementary principal, that will be other duties,” Criss told the board, stating she is working with her staff to draft a job description and a new principal would help administrators who are “spread very thin.”

A total of nine positions, including elementary school principal, had been eliminated last year after Winlock experienced a 7.8 percent drop in enrollment below projections, which officials had said appeared to be the result of a number of families moving out of Winlock to avoid commuting to jobs outside the area, and high costs of local utilities.

Enrollment this year has stabilized, according to Criss, who said extra monies have become available through full-time funding for kindergarten, rather than half-time, leading to greater overall income from the state.

Final approval when filling district positions rests with the District Board, and it is expected they will consider an applicant at an upcoming meeting.