Four Principals Changing Places in Menifee School District

Three elementary school principals within the Menifee Union School District will be switching schools for the next academic year and one middle school principal is being moved, drawing concern from a number of parents.

One group of parents who emailed Menifee 24/7 planned to gain signatures on a petition protesting the change at Chester W. Morrison Elementary, and others have contacted this news site promising a large turnout at Tuesday's school board meeting to protest the changes.

Betti Cadmus, public information officer for the district, said Monday such a rotation of principals is "common practice" within districts. She said this is a management move that does not require board approval. As always, however, residents are allowed to address issues during the public comments portion of the meeting, which begins at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at the district office.

"We've done this before, but not for many years," Cadmus said. "This is common practice in other districts. Principals are moved so the students at other schools can draw off their strengths and different skill sets. The students truly benefit from this."

Daphne Donoho, principal at Callie Kirkpatrick Elementary, will be moved to Oak Meadows Elementary for the fall. Manny Valdes (top photo) will move from Oak Meadows to Chester W. Morrision. Lynn Hanke will move from Chester W. Morrison to Callie Kirkpatrick.

In addition, Hans Christensen Middle School principal Ed Resnick (right) is being moved to Menifee Valley Middle School. He replaces Robert Voelkel, who left the district "to pursue other opportunities," according to Cadmus. The district is in the hiring process for a new principal at Hans Christensen.

Cadmus said she understands the concern by some about change but believes the students "will love the new principals coming into their school."

"It's a testimony of the principals' skill and commitment that so many are coming out to express their concerns," she said.