Greencastle hires Garletts as assistant superintendent

The process of narrowing from 46 applicants to finally the new Greencastle Community Schools assistant superintendent was long and involved.

However, from the time Superintendent Jeff Hubble interviewed his top 12 applicants, new Assistant Superintendent Donovan Garletts had to be listed as the favorite.

“In screening interviews, I planned for a 45-minute session,” Hubble said. “Donovan and I talked for 3-1/2 hours.”

Garletts continued to distinguish himself through the rest of the process. The field was narrowed to four, all of whom interviewed before three panels — one composed of faculty members, another of classified employees and a third of community members.

Following these round robin interviews, the three panels convened and Garletts emerged as one of two.

Finally, the last two met with the full Greencastle School Board in executive session last week.

“Donovan was very much the winner in the conversation,” Hubble said.

And so it was made official by Hubble’s recommendation and the unanimous vote of the board on Monday evening.

“I am just elated that Donovan’s going to be joining us,” Hubble said.

Garletts and his wife spent Monday in Greencastle and were in attendance for the decision.

“Everyone in Greencastle has made me feel more than welcome,” Garletts said on Tuesday. “After last night, I know I made the right decision and I hope they feel the same way.”

School Board President Denise Sigworth shares the excitement of her two top administrators.

“As a board, we are thrilled and excited a Donovan coming to Greencastle,” Sigworth said.

Garletts fills the vacancy left when Hubble was officially promoted to his current position earlier this year. Although he’s been able to delegate some tasks, he has been trying to do the work of two since the summer retirement of Dawn Puckett.

Far from just filling the vacancy, Garletts brings an area of expertise missing in Hubble’s repertoire — primary school. He is currently the princpal of Notre Dame Elementary in Michigan City.

“One of the priorities I put on going throught he applications is I wanted someone with proven primary school experience,” Hubble said. “I was a secondary school guy.”

The superintendent isn’t the only one happy to have an elementary guy.

“I talked to several teachers in the primary and they are thrilled to death to have someone with primary experience,” Sigworth said.

Prior to becoming principal of the elementary school, Garletts served as dean of Marquette Catholic High School. During his tenure at the high school, he also taugh social studies and physical education as well as seved as the school’s advancement director for two years.

If Garletts’ name is familiar to sports fan, it’s from his highly-successful seven-year run as boys’ basketball coach at Marquette Catholic. Under his guidance, the Blazers were 117-64 while winning four sectionals, three regionals and two semi-states.

With Garletts at the helm, Marquette Catholic won the 2014 IHSAA Class A title.

Now he’s leaving the coaching ranks behind for a differnt sort of challenge.

Praising his new bosses as a “great leader” and “visionary board,” Garletts talked of the leap of faith it took to make the jump, leaving the school and home he and wife Kristina have made in northwest Indiana.

“Marquette and Notre Dame are really all I’ve known,” he said. “It was my first career. To leave everything I know and love was scary.”

In the end, though, “the only negative was the unknown,” so he and Kristina took the plunge and accepted the offer.

Garletts received his bachelor’s degree in sociology and criminal justice at Indiana University, Bloomington. He earned a master’s degree in kinesiology and athletic administration from IU Bloomington. He received his principal license from Marian University.

In February 2016, Garletts received his Ph.D. from Indiana State University.

In the Michigan City community, Garletts has served on the redevelopment commission.

Hubble was especially impressed with this bit of community involvement.

“It reaches beyond what he does in the classroom and for the school corporation,” Hubble said.

Donovan, Kristina, their daughter and dog will be moving to the area following the end of the current school year.

While the Crown Point native is leaving behind northwest Indiana, the move will bring him closer to his brother and sister-in-law, both of whom work at IU-Bloomington, his in-laws and his best friend.

“So it just kind of made sense,” he said.

Garletts assumes his new duties during the first full week of June.

“Donovan’s had a lot of great accomplishments,” Sigworth said..” We’re excited to have him come down here. We’re especially excited to have help for Jeff. He’s had a on his shoulders this year.”