Valley Stream North H.S. principal to become assistant superintendent

The Valley Stream Central High School District Board of Education hired North High School’s principal as the district’s new assistant superintendent for personnel and administration on Tuesday.

Clifford Odell will officially begin the new position on July 1. Odell will fill the vacancy left by Tracy Nekulak, who resigned the position earlier this year.

“Congratulations to Mr. Odell,” Lawrence Trogel, president of the board of education, said after the board passed the motion. “We’re excited to have you and I’m confident you’ll do well.”

The motion was passed eight to one. Trustee William Stris was the lone dissenting vote.

“My no vote stems from the fact that, in my opinion, there was another candidate that was more qualified,” he said. “With that said, I wish Mr. Odell the best and will support him, as I know all my colleagues will, in his new assignment.”

Trogel said Odell's experience in the district set him apart for other applicants considered for the job.

“We had two very qualified candidates that we considered, but the majority of us thought Mr. Odell was the better of the two finalists,” he said. “His knowledge of how the district operates, the culture of the district, what our students really need really made us feel he was the best candidate.”

He also said the search for a new principal at North High School would begin immediately.

“It’s our goal, and our intention, to have someone in place by the time Mr. Odell assumes his new role on July 1,” Trogel said. “We’re going to start advertising the position immediately in order to ensure that we do have someone to take over for him as soon as he steps away.”

This story was updated to include additional comments from Larry Trogel on Clifford Odell's hire.