By David Vitrano

L’Observateur

RESERVE – After two years as Supervisor of Child Welfare and Attendance for St. John the Baptist Parish Public Schools, Perry DiCarlo is returning to his comfort zone.

DiCarlo, a 20-year veteran of the parish’s school system, recently accepted a position as principal of Riverside Academy in Reserve. In fact, it was his two decades of service that allowed him to consider applying for the job in the first place.

“It was very good timing for me,” said DiCarlo, who was able to retire from the school system because of the length of his employment. “If I wasn’t able to retire it would never have been done.”

Also, he is expecting to complete his doctorate in K-12 education later this year, he felt the time was right to return to playing a more hands-on role in the world of education.

He added, “I love being a principal.”

Prior to accepting the position with the Department of Child Welfare and Attendance, DiCarlo served as principal of a number of schools in the district for a total of 10 years. And while he said he had no complaints about his job at the central office, there were things he missed about being on-site at a school on a daily basis.

“I missed interacting with the kids,” he said, adding, “And there was a void in me making decisions to lead a school.”

Leading Riverside, however, will present some new challenges for the educator.

“My range of ages is a lot different,” he said.

DiCarlo’s previous stints as principal were mostly in elementary schools.

“Academically, I’m dealing with students moving on to post-secondary education,” he said.

He did say, however, that he has experience teaching at the high school level, so the change should not be too drastic.

Additionally, he is the father of two teenagers — 18-year-old Dominique and 17-year-old Christian.

“I have experience across the board, but I was never able to use it all in one place, which is exciting,” he said.

DiCarlo said much of the time between now and the start of the school year will be spent developing courses of study for the high school students.

“Every student needs to be successful for what they want to do now in life,” said DiCarlo.

He will have to adjust to a few other changes as well. Riverside is a private school, so teachers there are not bound by the standardized tests that are mandated for Louisiana’s public schools.

He said, “It gives you a little more teacher individuality.”

Riverside’s status as a private institution also means its funding is privately generated.

“You definitely have to keep an eye on where your money is going,” he said.

The Plaquemines Parish native should not have too much trouble keeping up with the finances, however, as he holds a degree in management, finance and accounting from Southeastern Louisiana University.

But for now DiCarlo is just looking forward to the start of the school year.

“I enjoy athletics, so I’m looking forward to that tremendously,” he said, adding, “I’m looking forward to meeting the whole faculty.”