
Shawn Gonyaw will serve as principal of Marion Cross School next school year, succeeding “Mr. Bill” Hammond who is set to retire. The announcement was made to applause at the Norwich School Board meeting last night, as seen on CATV. Mr. Gonyaw is currently the principal at the the Barnet School, a K-8 school in Barnet, Vermont.In introducing Mr. Gonyaw, School Board Chair Tom Candon said we are “grateful that we found you that you decided to join us here and we are excited for … what lies ahead as you help us move forward as a school and community”. SAU 70 Superintendent Jay Badams added that we are “excited to have you join us and think the school will be in really good hands.” Dr. Badams also observed that when he and School Board member Kelley Hersey visited the Barnet School, they “felt and saw a culture and climate that reminded us very much of what we have at Marion Cross.”
A brief bio of Shawn Gonyaw, previously issued by the Principal Search Committee says:
Mr. Gonyaw is currently the principal of the Barnet School, a K-8 school in the Caledonia Cooperative School District in Barnet, Vermont, and has served in this capacity since 2010. He currently teaches courses in Behavior Management and a Student Teacher Seminar on Portfolio Development at Northern Vermont University. Prior to his principalship at the Barnet School, Mr. Gonyaw served as the principal of the Westshire Elementary School in West Fairlee, Vermont, after teaching first grade there for three years. Before teaching in West Fairlee, he taught lower grades in Strafford and before that, taught elementary school in North Carolina. Mr. Gonyaw loves being an elementary school principal, takes a very collaborative approach to his leadership, and is a tireless advocate for his students. In 2018, Mr. Gonyaw was the recipient of the Vermont Middle-Level Principal of the Year award.
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Originally posted on HereCast on April 4, 2019