In a letter to Baldwinsville Central School District employees Tuesday, the Baldwinsville Board of Education announced it will be tapping Kathleen Davis as the district's acting superintendent effective February 1.
Deputy Superintendent Joseph DeBarbieri had stepped in for the former superintendent, Jason Thomson, who was suspended by the board last fall following a crowd-surfing incident at a high school football game that later resulted in his suspension by the board, and guilty plea to a DWAI charge from the village of Baldwinsville. The board is expected to soon hold a hearing on Thomson's employment future.
The letter to the district read in part, "the presence of Dr. Davis as Acting Superintendent will allow district administrators to focus on the duties associated with their positions for the benefit of our students and staff. Dr. Kathleen Davis has 41 years of experience in education serving as a coach, teacher, building administrator and Superintendent of Schools. She retired in 2016 after serving as the superintendent of Holland Patent Schools for 15.5 years."
According to the letter, Davis has been doing interim work since 2017 in the following districts:
- Vernon-Verona-Sherrill - Elementary Interim Principal
- Baldwinsville - Ray Middle School Interim Principal
- Oneida City - HS Interim Principal/Interim Superintendent
- Waterville Central - Interim Superintendent
- Canastota Central - Interim Superintendent
- New York Mills Union Free Schools - Interim Superintendent
- Geneva City Schools - Interim Superintendent
Her background includes teaching in the Utica College graduate program for education, with prior experience in the State Department of Education, read the letter.