Exeter area schools: Esther Asbell named next superintendent of SAU 16
EXETER — The SAU 16 Joint Board is promoting Esther Asbell to be the district's next superintendent, replacing David Ryan, who is leaving at the end of the 2022-23 school year.
The board voted Monday to appoint Asbell to the top position. Asbell has served as SAU 16’s assistant superintendent, then associate superintendent, for more than 12 years and will assume the superintendent role on July 1.
“I am looking forward to continuing to support all staff and our work in creating a student-centered learning environment where all students feel a sense of belonging and their differences valued,” Asbell said in a prepared statement.
Asbell has spent more than two decades working in K-12 education as a school counselor and an administrator in several leadership roles including assistant principal and principal. Her work with SAU 16 began in 2004, when she served as a middle school counselor and later as district improvement facilitator for the Exeter Region Cooperative School District through June 2006.
As assistant superintendent, Asbell is responsible for providing professional development for leadership in creating an SAU-wide competency-based educational system, overseeing school safety and security, social-emotional learning, leadership development and assisting with curriculum, instruction and assessment.
The board decided Asbell’s "skills, experience, and leadership vision are closely aligned with SAU 16 needs and priorities,” said SAU 16 Joint Board Chair Patrick O’Day.
SAU 16 includes 11 schools from pre-kindergarten to adult education serving the towns of Exeter, Brentwood, Kensington, East Kingston, Newfields and Stratham. It is one of the largest school districts in New Hampshire with more than 4,000 enrolled students.
Previous story:SAU 16, Superintendent David Ryan to part ways after 2022-23 school year
Ryan will be stepping down as of June 30, 2023. The SAU 16 Joint Board and Ryan announced in June they have "mutually agreed" not to extend his current contract.
The SAU 16 Joint Board established a Superintendent Search Steering Committee this past summer and the decision was made by the committee to look at in-house candidates for the position.
The committee engaged the SAU 16 community for input on top areas of focus for the district through an anonymous community survey and small discussion groups of students, teachers, paraprofessionals, support staff, school administrators, and parent/community members. The results of this survey will be made publicly available on the SAU 16 website later this month.
Asbell holds a doctorate in educational leadership from Southern New Hampshire University, superintendent and principal certifications from Plymouth State University, a Certificate of Advanced Study in education and master of science in counselor education from the University of Southern Maine, and a bachelor of science degree in social work from the University of New Hampshire. She serves on numerous boards, including the New Hampshire School Administrator Association Executive Board as president-elect, and the National Association for Behavioral Interventions and Threat Assessment Advisory Board.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: SAU 16 Joint Board names next superintendent of Exeter area schools
