Rye City Schools Superintendent Dr. Eric Byrne was pleased to announce that Ms. Suzanne Kelly-Short was appointed Principal of Rye High School at the District’s January 25 meeting.
He stated that, over the past year, the District has been engaged in a comprehensive search process. A search committee was formed and composed of faculty, support staff, students and parents, and District administrators.
“The initial search response in the spring of 2021 was more limited than we had hoped, and the size of the resulting candidate pool was quite small. After interviewing the top candidates, the committee recommended the District pause the search and resume later in the year.
Last fall, the District re-started the search with the same committee and located a larger pool of potential candidates. After an extensive interview process, three finalists were invited to participate in a full day of group interviews with Rye High students, parents, staff, faculty, District administrators, and members of the Board of Education. A final interview was conducted by the Board of Education.
“It became clear through the process that the best candidate for the job was already in the job,” said Dr. Byrne. “Suzanne Kelly-Short, the Interim Principal, demonstrated outstanding leadership skills from her first day in July of 2021. Having served as one of the High School’s two Assistant Principals for the past seven years, she knows the school and community extremely well and deftly stepped up to lead the school through the ever-challenging obstacles posed by Covid.
“Ms. Kelly-Short is a strong instructional leader who demonstrates the Rye Commitment in her daily work supporting students, staff, and the Rye community.
Suzanne Kelly-Short joined the District as an English teacher in the High School in 2002. In 2013, she served as the chair of the Middle and High School English Department. The following year she was appointed Assistant Principal. Prior to coming to Rye, she taught at Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains.
She has a B.A. in English —Secondary Education — from Fredonia State University, an M.A. in English Literature from Lehman College, and an advanced graduate certificate in Educational Leadership from SUNY Stony Brook.
Dr. Byrne expressed heartfelt thanks to all the committee members for their time and effort during the extended search process. “The insights and feedback of the committee were invaluable.”
Please join me in congratulating Ms. Kelly-Short on her appointment as Principal of Rye High School.
