School Superintendent Dr. Judy Palmer isn’t waiting to see if the Board of Education plans to keep her on in the district’s top spot — she was named Tuesday night to head the Region 7 school district.
She will replace Clinton A. Montgomery, who earlier this year announced his retirement.
The Region 7 Board of Education — which oversees schools in Barkhamsted, Colebrook, New Hartford and Norfolk — approved Palmer’s hiring Tuesday night. Palmer is a Winsted resident, where the Region 7 offices are located.
In Oxford, the Board of Education has for the past three months put off extending Palmer’s contract. In May it voided her existing contract over a technicality in its wording that allowed it to be automatically renewed, according to the school board’s lawyer.
Since then it has extended her contract while performing an evaluation of her performance. Last Friday it extended her contract to Aug. 13, at which time it was supposed to address the issue.
Parents, educators and former board members rallied around Palmer after the board voided the contract, speaking out at board meetings and holding a rally to show support for the superintendent.
Parents started a Facebook page “Save our Superintendent Dr. Judith A. Palmer” in the hopes of keeping her in Oxford.
