Chapman Named Interim Principal at Cherry Hill East

With no good candidates to fill the void at principal at Cherry Hill East and the start of the new year looming, the school board opted to go with a longtime district administrator to fill the post for the 2013-2014 school year.

Lawyer Chapman, who's spent close to two decades in the district, serving as assistant principal at Cherry Hill West, principal at Thomas Paine Elementary and as an assistant superintendent in the district, was officially appointed Tuesday night.

“Dr. Chapman’s experience makes him eminently qualified for this interim assignment,” said Superintendent Maureen Reusche. “I appreciate his willingness to serve the district in this capacity for the coming school year.”

The staff of administrators, faculty and support personnel at East should make it an easy transition for Chapman, Reusche said,

Chapman, who currently supervises the principals at East and Cherry Hill West as part of his duties as assistant superintendent, has been a principal before, at William Penn High School in Philadelphia.

With his move to East, Chapman will step away from his supervisory role as an assistant superintendent, with Joseph Meloche, the district's new curriculum head, and Reusche splitting those duties.

Meanwhile, school administrators are hitting the reset button on the process of getting a permanent administrator at East.

“Despite an extensive search process, we have been unable to find a good match to assume the East principal position,” Reusche said.

Rather than keeping the position advertised during the busy period ahead of the new school year, Reusche said the job will be posted again in December, with an eye toward finding a suitable candidate to take over the reins at East permanently by July 2014.

Former East principal John O'Breza retired at the end of the 2013 school year after spending his 45-year career in Cherry Hill's schools as both a teacher and administrator.