Changing Spots At The Home Of The Leopards

When the news of Hernando's school grades hit last July, cheers rang out throughout the county in celebration of A and B grades that helped earn the district's overall A.

Not at Hernando High School in Brooksville, though. Students, teachers and administrators were disappointed to learn the school could only muster its fourth straight D grade.

By that point Ken Pritz, a veteran educator in the district and former teacher at Hernando High, had accepted an offer from Superintendent Wayne Alexander to leave his position as the district's director of support operations and serve as principal at Hernando to improve the troubled school.

Now, eight months later, Pritz can tick off the changes he's made, and Alexander and teachers say the 1,400-student school is moving in the right direction.

Student discipline issues have improved, the approach to the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test has been overhauled to help raise scores, and student and staff morale is up, Pritz said Tuesday as students hunkered over the FCAT.

"We feel confident we're on the right track," he said.

"I couldn't be happier with the progress they're making," Alexander said.

Alexander said he realized not long after he arrived in the county two years ago there needed to be a leadership change at Hernando High. Betty Harper, who had served three years as principal there, had made progress to increase the school's lowest performing students, but it was time for a fresh perspective, he said.

Harper moved to the principal post at Deltona Elementary in Spring Hill. After getting to know Pritz and his background, Alexander decided he should succeed her.

"I felt he had the leadership skills necessary to turn the school around," Alexander said.

Pritz, who at the age of 51 has nearly three decades with the school district, had been out of the classroom for about eight years. He taught social studies at Hernando for a decade starting in 1980 before serving stints as assistant principal at Parrott Middle School and as principal at West Hernando Middle School.

In 2000, he was promoted to executive director of student services, which oversees curriculum districtwide. In 2004, he moved to director of support operations, which oversees non-instructional staff.

He enjoyed that job. "But as an educator, you do miss being around students," he said.

Pritz, who has two sons who attend the school, was also lured by Alexander's decision to let him pick his three assistant principals.

Brent Gaustad brought AP experience from Springstead High. Jill Renihan, a former assistant principal at West Hernando Middle, contributes knowledge of exceptional education strategies. Mary Krabel, a former AP at West Hernando, came out of retirement to serve under Pritz.

That's the kind of respected group of administrators that has helped get "buy-in" from the school's roughly 95 teachers, said Hernando Classroom Teachers Association President Joe Vitalo.

"It's a good team," Vitalo said.

Pritz also hired teachers who have the experience to help improve the school's lower performing students. He said he realized that there needed to be a wholesale change in how teachers and students perceive the FCAT.

"I think in the past the test was talked about to the point where students got sick of it," Pritz said. "We're not treating it as the end-all. We're treating it as a gauge on our progress toward where we need to be."

Students now get incentives for making progress in areas of reading and math, such as free lunch from culinary services or reduced tickets to the prom.

A renewed focus is on training teachers and giving them the resources they need to do their jobs. Once that happens, better FCAT scores are sure to follow, Pritz said.

There were other ways the "culture" of the school needed improvements, he said.

Pritz was alarmed by how often students would walk out of the classroom. Students are now punished with in-school suspension, and the frequency of those stunts has diminished.

Pritz brought in a new head custodian to ensure the school's sprawling, 40-acre campus remains trash-free. He bought new uniforms for the sports teams and split the $50,000 cost of new band uniforms with the band boosters.

"We're trying to show students we care for them," he said. "When they know you care, they perform for you."

Sadye Foster, a 26-year veteran English and humanities teacher, said she has seen the difference. Student behavior has clearly improved, and teachers appreciate Pritz's open door policy and commitment to providing teachers with resources they need.

"Our input is appreciated," Foster said. "We're more of a unified team."

Alexander said he has high hopes.

"I can't wait to see their A or B this year," he said.