RV SELECTS NEW PRINCIPAL
Process Included Student And Staff Selection Criteria
On 4/28/26 the Rancocas Valley Regional High School (RVRHS) Board of Education voted unanimously to appoint Mr. Shawn Counard as the school’s next principal, effective 7/1/26. Counard’s selection came by way of an extensive process that included students, teachers and administrators.
Reached for comment about student contribution to the selection, RVRHS Superintendent Dr. Karen Benton said students conducted a survey which revealed that RV’s next principal should be a “visible, responsive communicator and a student-centered community builder.”
Dr. Benton stated that a video is in production which highlights the “school community process” that channeled student and staff perspectives into a “Principal Leader Profile”. Regarding the selection scope, Dr. Benton said “I can share that for this principal role, we had over 30 candidates apply, and our selection process included initial screening, three rounds of interviews and a performance-based task. Mr. Counard rose to the top of that applicant pool.”
The RVRHS press release stated that Counard led efforts in Moorestown which reduced the number of students exceeding the school’s class absence threshold. The Reporter asked Mr. Counard how he accomplished this outcome and he replied:
“I believe strong leadership starts with effective communication. I implemented proactive strategies to alert families of attendance concerns well before students reached credit-loss thresholds. I integrated this focus by including the attendance policy in the student handbook acknowledgment, highlighting it during grade-level meetings and Back-to-School Night, and establishing a system of weekly warning letters for students nearing the limit.”
Counard holds a Master of Education in school leadership from Wilmington University and a Bachelor of Arts in history and education from Rowan University. He has more than 18 years of experience in K-12 education, including the past nine years in administrative roles. He served as assistant principal at Moorestown High School since July 2023.”
RV enrolls about 2,100 students which come from sending communities of Eastampton, Westampton, Hainesport, Lumberton and Mount Holly.