John Tackett, the Pulaski County Special School District's director of secondary education, was named Thursday interim superintendent of the Lonoke School District, where he previously worked 17 years as a principal, assistant superintendent and superintendent.
The Lonoke appointment, which was effective immediately and will go through the 2018-19 school year, came on the same night that the Pulaski Special district's School Board voted to eliminate its director of elementary and director of secondary education positions in a budget-cutting move.
Tackett, 57, was hired in the Pulaski County Special district in 2012. He has been instrumental in developing the Pulaski County Special district's state-approved school of innovation plan, known as Driven.
The new education delivery system will be implemented at Mills University Studies and Maumelle high schools in the 2018-19 school year and in Robinson and Sylvan Hills high schools in the 2019-20 school year. It includes blended learning, flexible scheduling, 1-to-1 student-to-device ratios, career pathways and mentors. Enrolled students will have the option to work online at their own pace in settings of their choice.
Tackett said Friday that the principals have had a lot of in-depth training and they, along with the involved central office staff, "will see the plan through and it will be a great success."
Tackett who has lived in Lonoke for 35 years, succeeds Merle Dickerson as superintendent of the 1,745-student Lonoke district. Dickerson resigned from the Lonoke job earlier in the week.
Metro on 04/22/2018