Dyer picked as new Marion school superintendent

MARION - Joseph Chris Dyer, a New York school superintendent whose family has Iowa ties, will be the next leader of the Marion Independent School District, the Marion school board said Thursday.

Dyer - who goes by Chris - has worked as the superintendent of the roughly 600-student Tuckahoe Common School District in Southampton, N.Y. since 2010.

Dyer will replace retiring superintendent Sarah Pinion, whose last day is June 30. Pinion announced her retirement in January and has led Marion schools since 2009.

David Law, the school board president, said Dyer's skill set would provide a 'natural progression” from what the district has done under Pinion, including improving its finances and facilities.

'We really want to continue to move forward,” Law said. 'We would like to be on the cutting edge, but we don't want to be someone else's research and development.”

Law said the board and Dyer did not discuss any expectations about how long he would work as superintendent. He said the board was aware that superintendents statewide only stay in one district for an average of four to five years.

Finances and teacher burnout are among the top challenges schools will face in the next five years, Dyer said last week in an interview with five Marion parents and businesspeople.

'What I'm most worried about as an educator is that the most important person in the classroom is the teacher - that they feel valued,” he said.

In his current district, Dyer said, he has implemented a prekindergarten program to help address a problem with young students' reading abilities.

'We had a pretty diverse population, and kids were coming into first grade not knowing how to read,” Dyer said.

Other initiatives Dyer said he he has overseen include a pilot program providing a computer to every student in fifth through eighth grade and a response to intervention program designed to help academically struggling students catch up.

Dyer said he is interested in the Marion district in part because it is a K-12 district. His current district does not include high school students, Dyer said.

Dyer also said he likes the Marion community, adding that his wife is from Iowa City. He said he would spend the first part of his time as superintendent listening to community desires and concerns.

Before taking over the Tuckahoe district, Dyer served as a superintendent for two years in Pennsylvania and a high school principal for two years in Virginia. He received a doctor of education degree from Virginia Tech University, according to the Marion district.

The benefits of hiring an experienced superintendent include better knowledge of school law and how to deal with legislators, Law said.

'I respect the energy that youth could bring to any position,” Law said. 'But we didn't set that as a priority or a dealbreaker.”

Law and Pinion said Dyer likely would work with Pinion on a transition over the next two months.

Dyer will start either July 1 or July 15. He asked the board to start July 15, board members said. The board agreed to give him that option, but voted to reduce his moving expenses by $2,500 if he started July 15. He would receive $10,000 in moving expenses if he started July 1.

Dyer's salary for the 2015-16 school year will be $160,000, not including the moving expenses, said district business manager John Donner.

Dyer first interviewed with the Marion school board via Skype earlier this month. He met on Thursday with the board, administrators, teachers, staff and students, in addition to the parents and businesspeople.

In hiring Dyer, the board passed up Michael Houselog, a superintendent in Belvidere, Ill.