Search begins for new Revere High administrative team

  The School Department is beginning the process of finding a new leadership team for Revere High School. Last week, Principal Dr. John Perella and Deputy Principal Leah Tuckman submitted letters of resignation to Superintendent of Schools Dr. Dianne Kelly. Both Perella and Tuckman will serve in their positions through the rest of the current school year.

  Perella, a Revere native, has been in the district since 1997 as a teacher, athletic coach and administrator, with a break from 2012 to 2018 when he served as the Headmaster at Medford High School. He returned to Revere in 2018 to take the top job at Revere High School.

  In notifying students and families, Perella thanked the community for its trust and support. “This extraordinary community needs a school leader who can take the torch and push forward with relentless energy and excitement,” said Perella. “It is time for me to pass it on. Revere is a city like no other. Within it is genuine beauty, truly exciting potential and possibility, and deep-seated challenges and barriers. RHS is front and center in the struggles that define our time. I wish you all the best and look forward to being an observer of the next chapter of the RHS journey.”

  Tuckman worked in the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education before coming to Revere three years ago. Tuckman stated that she will always be grateful to the educators that stepped up to help with academic and social-emotional student support, coverage needs and teacher leadership roles. “I will most certainly miss you and our amazing students,” she stated.

  Kelly said the last two years have not been easy ones for school leaders and that Perella and Tuckman made the decisions that their work-live balances needed some readjustments. “In terms of stress, I would put the job of High School principal and deputy principal at a level comparable to the superintendent or assistant superintendent jobs,” Kelly said. “I am not terribly surprised by their decisions but I do feel this is a good time for all of us to consider what kind of leaders will best serve students and staff as we move forward.”

  Kelly told the School Committee that with the changes in leadership now could be a good time to look at the structure of the administrative team at the high school. To help get that process underway with the Revere High School community, Kelly will be leading a group discussion in the Revere High School Learning Commons on Tuesday, March 29 at 5 p.m. The discussion will be about the characteristics desired in the next building leadership team, priority areas of focus and whether or not the current administrative structure is best suited to the needs of students and staff.

  Kelly said the School Committee may also want to consider contracting with a hiring firm that has more national reach to help oversee the administrative search process. “We are in a time right now where it’s very difficult to find people,” she said. “People just don’t want the job.”