Parents Decry Non-Renewal of Pell Lower School Principal's Contract

Staff and a number of parents of children at the Pell School are upset over the decision by the School Committee to not renew Lower School Principal Jane Perkins' contract on Tuesday.

"Mrs. Perkins has helped me with my child," said Angela Atwood, who addressed the City Council on Wednesday night.

Atwood, who came to her first-ever council meeting out of frustration, said her child was "lost twice" at the school "and they've corrected this and done it with a smile and fixed everything."

And that is in no small part thanks to Perkins, Atwood said, lamenting the willingness to invest in technology but not people.

"We don't need 50,000 iPads," she said. "How about we go back to educating teacher to student."

Other parents and staff members took to Facebook, including one parent and staff member who said at least three staff members spoke against the decision.

"I would say some members of the School Committee were more concerned with the time rather than the fact room was filled with people in support of lower school Principal Jane Perkins!" said Katie Dugan.

"Parents have weathered the storm knowing that our leader Jane Perkins was in it for the long haul and committed to making it work," Dugan said. "She is the leader we need. She has become the new face of Pell, not coming from any of our merging schools. I don't have the words to tell you how well loved and respected she is by ALL. Tomorrow will not be easy for any of us......."

Superintendent Colleen Jermain said she could not elaborate on the decision not to renew Perkins' contract, citing personnel matters.

But Jermain said there will be two administrators at the school "no matter what," in an e-mail message.

"The goal is to have even more supports there than this year," Jermain said. "We want to build on what we have done this year."

Perkins was appointed to the job last May. She was an aspiring principal at State Street School in Westerly before that.