New faces will lead schools across Newport County. A look at the changes

MIDDLETOWN – Two Middletown educators are moving on to bigger leadership roles in the district.

Other schools in the area will also experience some leadership changes heading into the 2024-25 school year.

Former Gaudet Middle School Principal William Niemeyer last April was named the new Middletown superintendent.

To fill his former role at the middle school, 2013 Middletown High School graduate and a math teacher at the district’s high school, Gerald Haas, has left his teaching position to become Gaudet’s principal.

Niemeyer, who has served as principal at Gaudet since 2021, was selected from a field of seven finalists that was narrowed down from 18 applicants in a nationwide search led by the New England School Development Council.

Niemeyer has replaced Rosemarie Kraeger, who has worked for the district for more than 40 years and is the longest-tenured superintendent to serve the district, with more than 26 years as its leader.

Kraeger announced in 2022 that she would be retiring at the end of this school year.

Before coming to Middletown, Niemeyer was a principal at a Providence elementary school and worked as an assistant principal at Central High School in Providence.

In a written release from Middletown, Niemeyer has been described as a “friendly force” within Gaudet during his three-year tenure, helping to establish solid relationships with students, staff and parents.

Niemeyer was lauded by school officials for his ability to problem solve.

Similar words have been used to describe Niemeyer’s replacement, Haas.

Haas has been described as a positive presence in the classroom with a knack for reaching all students, according to a written release from Middletown spokesman Matt Sheley.

“I knew from the time I was a student at Middletown High School that I wanted to become a teacher and then eventually a principal in Middletown. I have always felt the best way to give back to the community was to help provide the same great school experience to the Middletown students who came after me,” Haas said in that release.

New assistant principal at Portsmouth High School

According to Portsmouth Superintendent Thomas Kenworthy, longtime Portsmouth High School math teacher Jeff Rose will be a new assistant principal at the high school. Other than that, the only leadership change involves George Simmons as the new facilities director.

According to Kenworthy, Simmons will share that role with the Town of Portsmouth.

Kenworthy said that Simmons’ dual role won’t be cost-saving but it will lead to a “better efficiency of operations" for both the district and the town.

Changes to elementary school principal roles in Tiverton

In Tiverton, after a tumultuous spring that nearly led to the closure of Fort Barton Elementary School , there are more reported leadership changes for the district.

Superintendent Peter Sanchioni noted that Fort Barton’s principal role was reduced to part-time because of budget constraints.

Joao Arruda, a retired principal who has worked in a couple of the nearby districts, has taken on the part-time role.

Amy Donnelly-Roche, formerly the Fort Barton Principal, took a full-time job at Pocasset Elementary School

Subsequently, the former principal at Pocasset, Suzette Wordell resigned to pursue other positions in central administration, according to Sanchioni.

At the Ranger Elementary School, Gail Ponte stepped in last year as an interim principal following the retirement of former Ranger Principal Manauel Cabral.

Ponte will continue on as Ranger’s school leader, says Sanchioni.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: New faces will lead schools across Newport County. A look at the changes