Saline Middle School is seeing a change at Principal

There’s a leadership change happening at Saline Middle School with the school district welcoming back David Raft as the interim Principal.

In a message to middle school families, Saline Area Schools said,

“Dear Saline Middle School Community:

Saline Area Schools Middle School Principal, Michelle Szczechowicz recently announced her resignation as she accepted a new position. We want to thank Principal Szczechowicz for the wonderful job she has done as a District Leader for over 17 years in the Saline Area Schools. We are excited for her next opportunity as the Holly Area Schools Director of Curriculum.”

SAS said as a result, “we are pleased to welcome back David Raft as the Interim Principal through February 29, 2024. Raft served the Saline Area School District for over 30 years at many levels, including former Principal of Saline Middle School. He will begin this Interim role on October 9th.”

Raft’s most recent role was serving as Executive Director of Secondary Education Curriculum and Instruction in the Wayne Westland School District. SAS said Raft “now has the opportunity to serve as the SMS Interim Principal and retire from Saline Area Schools after we name (and transition to) a permanent principal at Saline Middle School.”

David Raft. photo courtesy of LinkedIn

The district said it considered certain needs in its decision to transition to an interim principal. These included:

• Knowledge and appreciation of middle school students and staff
• Deep understanding of middle school buildings and how they are run
• Consistency in maintaining an orderly instructional environment

In its message to the school community, SAS said as it works through this transition, “we are thankful to Lindsay Guenther who will continue to provide leadership as our outstanding SMS Assistant Principal. The anticipated timeline for filling the permanent SMS Principal position is as follows:

• Post position through October 20th
• Week of Oct. 30 - Conduct initial interviews
• Week of Nov 6 - Conduct final interviews
• November - Present candidate to Board of Education
• January 8, 2024 - Anticipated new candidate start date
• January 8 - February 29, 2024 - Transition period where both Interim and selected Principal work together
• February 29, 2024 - Interim Principal last day