By Leonard E. Colvin

Chief Reporter

New Journal and Guide

Dr. Richard Bentley will be sworn-in as the Superintendent of Norfolk’s Public Schools (NPS) in August. He said he plans on hitting the ground running to take command of a school division which has been battered by controversy and low morale among its personnel.

Dr. Bentley is well aware of these challenges and has written a long “to do” list of tasks to move past the recent storms and begin concentrating on uplifting the morale of  personnel and improve their ability provide a quality educational experience for the district’s 33,000-plus students.

Dr. Bentley was in Norfolk last week house hunting and getting acquainted  with NPS central administrative office staff,  city council and school board members and highly regarded civic and religious leaders in the  city.

He said his effort is to “get a feel” for the culture and mores of the people he will work with from now on.  He said the indoctrination ritual  will be intensified  when he launches a “Learning and Listening” tour to meet people “I need to spend time with a diversity of people, including staff, politicians, civic leaders and especially families in the Norfolk community,” he said.

Dr. Bentley said he especially wants to interact with the NPS teachers and principals. He has already dispatched an E-mail to Central Office administrative staff, principals and vice principals asking them “what are you proud of…what do we need to fix…what are your ideas on improving our student ability to learn in our classrooms.”

He said that school officials have agreed to conduct  a “SWOT” analysis based on input from NPS personnel to determine the “Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats” facing the Norfolk Public Schools.

“When I say threats I mean factors which we face which can impact negatively on our children, our teachers and schools,” Dr. Bentley said during an interview from his home in Texas with the New Journal and Guide last week.

Dr. Bentley will replace Dr. Stephen Jones who retired. He was among the three finalists who visited  Norfolk in early June and were introduced to the community.

Rev. (Dr.) Kirk Houston was recently appointed the chair of the NPS School Board. On July 18, while he was visiting the area, Dr. Bentley attended worship services at the church Rev. Houston pastors, Gethsemane Baptist Church in the Brambleton section of Norfolk.

Houston said that he visited El Paso to interview to Ysleta Public School personnel and civic leaders and the subject was Dr. Bentley and work in the school district.

“I spent 45 minutes with an array of people and each one  was impressed…and passionate talking about his leadership, ability to communicate, and the strategic thinking of Dr. Bentley,” said Rev. Houston.

Houston said that students’ achievements  and rebuilding the confidence  of the community in the Norfolk Public Schools should be the top two items on Dr. Bentley’s “to do” list. 

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