Why would principal retire 5 weeks into school year? CMS veteran says there’s a reason.

Kit Rea understands why people may have found her Oct. 1 retirement as Vance High School principal jarring. But the 34-year veteran of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools says to insiders the timing makes perfect sense.

Rea said she was surprised to see an Observer article posted Monday, the day CMS announced her departure, saying the district wouldn’t explain the timing or process of the leadership change, which comes five weeks after classes began.

While spring or summer might seem like a better time for a leadership switch, Rea says that brings turmoil just as high schools are preparing course schedules for the coming year and locking in faculty. Uncertainty about who’s going to lead the school could push some teachers to switch schools or deter new hires, Rea said.

Once the school year begins, she said, a new principal has time to get to know the school and build loyalty among faculty before the next year’s scheduling and hiring begin.

The Oct. 1 date also worked best for her benefits, Rea said. Her last day was Friday.

CMS announced Rea’s departure on Monday, along with the decision to replace her with Curtis Carroll, a veteran principal and central office administrator. The Observer emailed several questions about the timing and process to the district’s public information office Monday. Spokesman Brian Hacker acknowledged receiving them but sent no answers.

Rea said her faculty and her supervisor have known her departure plans since July, when she told them she was retiring because her mother, who has dementia, needs her care. She said she felt like she was leaving Vance, which serves about 1,700 students in the UNC Charlotte area, “in a great place.”

Rea said her school followed the CMS principal selection process, which includes faculty involvement and candidate interviews. But as Oct. 1 neared, Rea said, Superintendent Clayton Wilcox told her it looked like he was going to name an interim.

Rea said she was delighted when Wilcox brought Carroll to Vance last week to announce he had taken the job. Carroll, who currently supervises academics and equity at all high schools, has been principal of Phillip O. Berry and Harding high schools and McClintock Middle.

“I’m ecstatic,” Rea said. “He’s going to be fabulous.”

Meanwhile, CMS announced Wednesday that Vance is dedicating its Friday football game to Rea, who is a breast cancer survivor. The school will make a donation to a new Kit Rea fund at the Levine Cancer Center, with money designated to provides mammogram and resources for women who can’t afford them, the news release said.

This story was originally published October 3, 2018 at 2:36 PM.