Dear Editor,
Recently, the Board of Education made the difficult decision not to renew Dr. Perry’s contract by a narrow 4-3 vote. As your District 2 BOE representative, I want to take this opportunity to publicly acknowledge Dr. Perry for his service and dedication. While I believed it was time to move on and felt the district was ready for a new direction, I do not take any pleasure in making this decision, and I feel it’s important to give Dr. Perry the credit he deserves.
When we hired Dr. Perry, we had several candidates that I felt were more qualified at the time.
However, as a board, I supported the decision and was committed to working with him. Dr. Perry stepped into a challenging environment. Prior to his arrival, there were obvious issues between the board and the previous superintendent, but on day one, Dr. Perry assured me that this would not be a problem, and it never was a problem. Throughout his tenure, even when we didn’t always agree on various issues, Dr. Perry remained professional in his duties, and for that, I respect him deeply.
Dr. Perry didn’t just guide us through internal board dynamics — he also led us through one of the most challenging times in education: the COVID-19 pandemic.
His leadership during this crisis was steady and reliable, helping to navigate uncharted waters when our community needed it most.
For that, we owe him a debt of gratitude.
I truly believe that although I feel the district is now ready for bigger and bolder things, Dr. Perry was the perfect leader for the time we needed him. I believe we need a leader that is not scared to make decisions in the best interest of all students, even if that means seven members don’t agree. I never understood how someone with a degree and experience lets seven people without a degree and experience tell them how to run the district, but that’s a different letter.
Now, our focus must shift to moving the district forward and selecting the next visionary to take us to the next step. But as we do so, let’s remember to thank Dr. Perry for a job well done rather than focus on the fact that he will not be returning.
Again, as your District 2 representative, I want to publicly thank Dr. Perry for seven years of dedication and service to our community. The future of this district is in the hands of these seven board members, and I hope we make the right decisions for the 11,000-plus students of Liberty County. As always, every decision I make will be guided by what I believe is in the best interest of our students.
Let’s move forward, but let’s also give Dr. Perry his flowers for all he has done for us.
Dr. Marcus Scott IV, Liberty County BoE, District 2