As the school year opens, the school administrative unit governing Weare schools has a new team in charge.

Doug White, the former assistant superintendent, has moved up to the superintendent position after former superintendent Christine Tyrie left the district for a new job with the Blackstone- Melville Regional school district in southern Massachusetts.

Pam Shepard, formerly the principal at Henniker Community school, also part of the SAU, has taken on the role of assistant superintendent.

“The big thing is that Christine left us in great shape, and her focus and the continued focus of the district is on literature, technology and wellmanaged schools. I think that’s where our focus will stay,” said White, who officially took over the job July 1.

Going forward, said both White and Shepard, the district will focus more on formative assessment, which is a way of analyzing test scores that allows teachers to delve deeper into each student’s learning curve and identify problem areas. White’s duties now focus more on governance, budgeting, transportation and the dayto- day management of schools, while Shepard will hone in on curriculum, instruction, assessment, programming and grant funding.

The new leaders will also focus more on maintaining and building on curriculum to ensure seamless transitions for students from kindergarten all the way through their entry into John Stark Regional High School. For Weare in particular, a large part of that challenge will lie in funding.

The school district avoided its second default budget in a row by adding $240,000 to the $12.4 million default budget voted in March, a tactic which passed with voters the second time around in a 751-591 vote when the Weare School Board went back to the polls with it in June.

The school district’s operating budget for 2008-09 will now be $12,703,776, representing a tax rate increase of 52 cents per $1,000 of assessed value from last year. For a home assessed at full value that is worth $250,000, that’s a tax bill increase of $130.

“I think the biggest issue for Weare is adequate funding,” said Shepard. “We’re looking at ways to maximize the resources we have so we can continue to provide quality education.”

One of the wrenches thrown into that challenge is the cost of fuels, which affects everything from heating to transportation. “As we look at adequate education, we need to make sure that we’re fiscally responsible and that we develop budgets that meet the needs of our school system so that students can have the best possible instruction. The increase in fuel costs and the understanding of how that impacts how we do business will be something we need to be watching,” White said.

Having worked together in the district for many years already, both White and Shepard said the transition has been relatively seamless.

White said Shepard’s experience as a principal will allow her to see things through the eyes of the district’s current principals to determine the needs of schools.

“I’m really excited about the team effort we have going across the school district. I think that’s an evolution,” Shepard said.