Chester District 139 BOE accepts Keefe resignation
<span>CHESTER -- </span>The Chester District 139 Board of Education accepted Chester High School Principal Tim Keefe's resignation in a unanimous vote at its rescheduled meeting on Wednesday.
The board was scheduled to take up the action as part of its regularly-scheduled meeting on Feb. 19, but the meeting was postponed due to weather. Keefe's resignation is effective June 30.
<span>He did not attend the meeting.</span>
<span>"All I can say is he put in a resignation for personal reasons," said District Superintendent Chris Diddlebock in an earlier phone interview with the Herald Tribune.</span>
<span>That was echoed by Keefe in an interview at CHS on Feb. 24.</span>
<span>"We've done a lot of great things at Chester High School in the past four years that I'm very proud of," he said. "This school will continue to be successful. I've felt that I've given four very good years here and my wife and I felt it was time to move on."</span>
<span>According to suntimesnews.com, Keefe took office at CHS on July 1, 2011, joining incoming superintendent Diddlebock and new Vice Principal Teri Franklin.</span>
<span>Diddlebock was the former principal of Calhoun High School in Hardin, while Franklin was a long-time CHS Science teacher and is also curriculum director for Chester High School.</span>
<span>Keefe took over for interim principal Fran Vallo, who had replaced former principal Keith Kittell. Kittell was dismissed, with pay, by the Board of Education earlier that year.</span>
<span>"Yes," Keefe said, when asked if it felt like four years.</span>
<span>Keefe said one of the accomplishments he is proud of is working with Franklin to "see all students."</span>
<span>"That all students feel that there is at least one adult here that they can go to for any issues," he said. "Students need to know there is at least one caring adult in their lives outside of their family that they can turn to for anything.</span>
<span>"The kids need to have that relationship with at least someone at their school."</span>
<span>Keefe said it is important that school officials see students' positives and things they can improve upon.</span>
<span>"We'll try to help them with that," he said. "But that's one thing I've been very, very proud of with this staff."</span>
<span>Keefe said his focus between now and the end of the school year is "finishing strong" and leaving CHS "better than it was four years ago."</span>
<span>Keefe also touched on his future after CHS.</span>
<span>"I have some possibilities that I'm looking at...in administration," he said. "Within the state."</span>
<span>Diddlebock said the timeframe on finding Keefe's replacement is a decision the Board of Education will make.</span>
<span id="docs-internal-guid-6a81c1a0-c44f-a6c9-d1a2-2eaaadc2b80f"><span>"There are some people in the district who have their Type-75s, which is administrator certification," he said.</span></span>