AMHERST — Fort River School’s principal for five years, on an interim and then permanent basis, will be leaving for a position at a school in Thailand at the end of the school year.
In a letter to families sent Thursday, both Principal Diane Chamberlain and Assistant Principal Renee Greenfield announced their departures effective July 1.
“We are grateful for the experiences we have shared and the learning we have gained while part of the Fort River family,” they wrote. “We appreciate all the moments we have chosen love, together, and with your children. It has been a joy and an honor to lead in our community.”
Superintendent Michael Morris wasn’t available Friday to comment on the changes at the elementary school, one of three in Amherst, or the process for hiring successors.
The correspondence notes that they wouldn’t have planned to leave at the same time.
Chamberlain’s job will be at the Ruamrudee International School in Bangkok, where her husband, a teacher, will also work, and their children will attend the school.
Chamberlain initially served as interim principal following the departure of Bobbie Finocchio in June 2016, and then in February 2018 had the interim title removed. Previously, Chamberlain was assistant principal at the school, principal at the former South Amherst campus, an administrator at the middle and high schools, and worked as a teacher in special education.
Meantime, Greenfield, hired to be Fort River’s assistant principal in June 2018 after serving as a specialized instructional coach, has been appointed to lead the Carroll School, which has three campuses near Boston for students with dyslexia. Greenfield will be relocating with her family.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
