HARRISON – Two years ago, Walter Wallace became the leader of a school with problems.

Low reading, writing and math test scores had earned Harrison Elementary a spot on the state’s “priority list” for failing to meet standards. Teachers ran their classrooms without a lot of input from peers. Staff turnover was high.

Today, the once failing school is regarded as one of the best in the SAD 17 system. Test scores are up. Teachers are getting more training and support.

And many people credit Wallace with the change.

“Walter has definitely pulled us up by our bootstraps,” said Mary Kronillis, a parent and teaching assistant at Harrison Elementary.

But this week, the small elementary school will lose its champion.

Wallace is leaving to head an elementary school in Brunswick.

“That’s disappointing news for us,” said SAD 17 Superintendent Mark Eastman, who oversees Oxford-area schools. “It’s great news for Brunswick. He’s just been a gem.”

Wallace started teaching about 15 years ago, beginning his career as a multi-age teacher at the Chebeague Island School and as a fifth-grade teacher in Cumberland and North Yarmouth. In 2001, SAD 17 hired him to lead Harrison.

Quick turnaround

Of his move into administration, he said, “I could affect more lives than a classroom teacher can.”

Wallace, 37, arrived that summer knowing the state had placed the 220-student school in “priority status” because student test scores had not shown adequate progress. But he also knew that the staff and community cared about its school.

“I figured if we had that, we were going to be okay,” he said.

During his first months, Wallace talked with students and met with parents and staff. He established an improvement plan and worked on building trust.

Within two years, the first-time principal had set up teacher teams and ensured the curriculum was consistent from one grade to the next. He made sure that each class spent at least an hour on math and 90 minutes on literacy every day.

Test scores started to rise.

In between, teachers and students got to know their principal as a friendly, engaging person.

“He’s a nice guy. He’s a real nice guy,” said Kronillis.

Kids relate

A staff member and mother of two Harrison elementary students, she said Wallace is able to talk with kids about sports and video games, connecting with them on their level. She still remembers him taking the time to watch her kindergartner show off his skateboarding skills.

“The kids can relate to Walter,” she said.

That was one of the things that Brunswick Superintendent James Ashe couldn’t help but notice, too, when he toured Harrison Elementary during a site visit. Students kept stopping Wallace in the hallway.

“He knew them by name. They knew him by name.” Ashe said. “He seemed approachable. We wanted an approachable principal.”

After more than two years at Harrison, Wallace applied this fall for a job as principal of the Coffin School, a Brunswick elementary school with 440-students in kindergarten through grade five. Wallace said he liked the school’s location, reputation and community support. He liked the fact that the medium-sized elementary will give him a chance to work with more students.

He announced his plans to leave Harrison earlier this month.

“He brought us all this way and we’re like ‘oh no,'” Kronillis said.

For Wallace, leaving is bittersweet. He’s loved Harrison, its students and staff. It will always hold a special place in his heart, he said.

“We have come a long way in two years,” Wallace said. “I wouldn’t be leaving if I didn’t feel comfortable where the school is.”

Art Turner, former curriculum director for SAD 17, will serve as interim principal while the school system searches for a permanent replacement. The district’s superintendent said the school system has already received applications for the position. He hopes to have it filled by January.

In the meantime, Kronillis said she’s sad to see Wallace go but she knows the school will be all right.

“We’ll move on from here. He set the foundation. We can move from here,” she said.

ltice@sunjournal.com