Loren Connell named interim superintendent of WIS

Connell has been appointed by the Williamsburg Independent Board of Education to serve as interim superintendent.

As the interview process is underway for Williamsburg Independent School’s next superintendent, a familiar face at the school district has been appointed to an interim role to temporarily fill the vacancy.

The Williamsburg Independent Board of Education met last Wednesday for a special-called meeting to discuss the then-pending vacancy to be left by outgoing Superintendent Tim Melton, who accepted a new position last month with Knox County Schools. The board met in a closed, executive session for approximately 45 minutes before naming Loren Connell as the district’s interim superintendent.

Connell has served his entire 27 years in education at Williamsburg, where he began as a teacher and a coach before moving into an administrative role as the district’s director of instruction—a position he has now held for 20 years.

Following the board’s decision, Connell spoke to the News Journal regarding his appointment, in which he talked confidently about being able to fill the role until a full-time replacement is found.

“I’ve worked in this district my entire career and I think I have an understanding of how it works and where we need to be and when we need to be there, so I’m looking forward to setting the wheels in motion as we are moving forward,” said Connell.

“My role is just to keep pressing forward and getting ready for the start of the school year. There are still personnel to be hired, positions that need to be opened up, we need to pay the bills and ensure the fact that the building and the campus is ready to roll and that’s what I hope to do here over the immediate future.”

Connell officially assumed the role as interim superintendent on July 1, as Melton’s contract ended June 30.

Board Vice Chair Kim White told the News Journal that she expects the need for an interim will be “fairly short” since the interview process for possible replacements has already begun.

“We had a nominating committee that had a first look at resumes and applications, so they have provided recommendations and we have chosen a first round of applicants to interview,” said White.

According to White, “two or three” interviews are planned for this week. A special-called board of education meeting has since been scheduled for today, July 5, to conduct those interviews. All interviews with potential candidates are performed during closed, executive session.

White stated that an ideal timeline would be to find a permanent replacement by Aug. 1, but noted that a decision won’t be made until the board feels they have found “the best candidate for the job.”