DATE: Tuesday, July 1, 1997                 TAG: 9707010259

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B6   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY MICHELE VERNON-CHESLEY, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:   62 lines

PARENTS PROTEST TRANSFER OF NORFOLK PRINCIPAL THE LOSS OF LEADER AT W.H. TAYLOR WILL UNDERMINE SCHOOL'S STABILITY, THEY SAY.

The School Board's recent decision to transfer a popular principal brought parents and students from two elementary schools to the superintendent's office Monday in protest - even though the principal accepts the change.

Parents from W.H. Taylor and Sherwood Forest elementary schools met for about an hour Monday with Superintendent Roy D. Nichols Jr. They tried to convince him that his decision to transfer Taylor Principal Mary Ann Bowen to Sherwood Forest came at a bad time.

``I think it's a mistake,'' said Peggy Herron, who had two children in Taylor this past school year. ``We need the stability.''

Nichols postponed a vacation to take a closer look at the situation and make a final decision, spokesperson George Raiss said.

``Any time you transfer a popular principal, it is a move that is subject to criticism,'' he said.

Coupled with that criticism is another controversy that has surrounded Taylor much of the school year. For months, board and community members wrestled with whether to demolish the aging building or renovate it. The decision was made to build a new school, but the issue divided the community and left neighbors at odds.

``The situation has been festering now for about two years,'' said School Board Chairman Ulysses Turner. ``It doesn't have anything to do with the quality of Ms. Bowen. It has everything to do with the community itself. We do have a divided community.''

Bowen's transfer, some parents say, will further divide the community and shortchange Taylor students. They insist that Bowen's leadership is needed to guide the community through the building of a new school.

``I have never seen any controversy like this that has ripped people apart,'' said Herron, who attended Taylor as a child. ``Now is not the time to create an unstable situation.''

Herron said a Sherwood Forest parent read a letter to Nichols saying that although Sherwood would welcome Bowen's leadership, some parents there do not want their school's gain to be such a big loss for Taylor.

``Parents came down because they know what it's like,'' said Herron. ``They know how much we've suffered.''

The Taylor parents have vowed to continue their protest in front of the school at 6 p.m today.

But if Principal Bowen is unhappy with the move, she's not saying so. Instead she said she's looking forward to building bridges at her new school.

``It's just like that teacher who leaves her class in June,'' Bowen said. ``You love what you left, and you look forward to the next one.''

Bowen, who spent three years as Taylor's principal and 21 years in education, said change is inevitable in the school system. She said she appreciates the outpouring of support because it comes from people she knows personally.

The School Board approved Bowen's transfer Thursday. Her last official day at the school was Monday.

Turner, the School Board chairman, said the superintendent and the board now must work to mend fences. He hopes the board will convene a meeting some time this week with parents and community members. Turner cautioned, however, that the superintendent is not likely to rescind his decision.

``We hired the superintendent to be our leader,'' Turner said, ``and we're going to give him every opportunity to do that.'' MEMO: Staff writer Diane Washington contributed to this report.

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