RANGELEY – Renovations to the multi-purpose room and cafeteria are just some of the new things students at Rangeley Lakes Regional School will see when they return to class next week. Other changes to the building are a larger music room and improvements to the industrial arts areas.

There is also a new superintendent and principal.

Michael Buckley likes working in small schools, he said in an interview Monday. The new superintendent and principal said he feels that he can do more and have a bigger impact in a small school because there is less bureaucracy and because he knows everyone.

Buckley has a bachelor’s degree in biology from Southern Illinois University, a master’s degree in education from Chicago State University and a certificate of advanced studies from University of Maine at Orono.

He brings more than a decade of educational and administrative experience to School Union 37.

Most recently, he served as the assistant superintendent for SAD 3 in Unity and, before that, as superintendent in the Champlain Islands in Vermont.

Some of the changes that he and the school board are bringing are the addition of a student representative on the school board, a high school parent orientation meeting, a weekly parent newsletter, and opening the school building earlier in the day.

The new superintendent hopes to provide more academic time for already busy middle and high school students by opening the school building at 7:30 a.m. Students in grades six to 12 will be able to report to their homerooms between 7:30 a.m. and the 7:55 a.m. start time.

During that period they can visit with teachers for individual guidance and questions or use the time to study. In previous years, students were not allowed into the building until 7:50 a.m. and would mill about outside until the doors were unlocked.

“This will give the kids more academic time,” said Buckley. “They will be able to use that time positively,” he added.

Buckley also plans to provide parents with a weekly informational newsletter that will be published each Friday.

Also new this year will be an orientation session for the parents of all high school students, which will allow parents to introduce themselves to new staff and visit with teachers. The meeting will be held from 7 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 9, in the cafeteria.