St. Joseph Catholic School is seeking a new principal to replace Dan Hattaway, who began a job this week at Jess Dunn Correctional Center.

However, the Tulsa Catholic Diocese, which operates St. Joseph, is in no rush to find a replacement, said Todd Goldsmith, school superintendent for the diocese.

“We have an interim group in place as we are beginning the search for a new principal,” Goldsmith said. “We don’t want to rush. We want to make the right decision.”

Hattaway, who became St. Joseph principal in 2007, said he started his new job as a corrections teacher at the prison in Taft on Monday.

“It’s more of an administrative program,” he said. “I will do a lot of testing and data entry.”

He said he works at the prison 10 hours a day, Mondays through Thursdays. He said he will work at St. Joseph, 323 N. Virginia St., on Fridays, if he’s available.

“So, I’m not abandoning ship, I’m moving to another place,” he said. “We have an administrative matrix in place at the school that works well.”

Hattaway said Sandy Brewer, administrative assistant for St. Joseph, will take over administrative duties on Mondays and Thursdays. Jimmy Perkins, youth director at St. Joseph Catholic Church, will work Tuesdays and Wednesdays. He said the temporary administrators will help school employees do reports, payroll and other paperwork. Any discipline or other issues would be handled by the Rev. Brian Brooks, pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church, he said.

“Father Brian is in charge of the school primarily,” Hattaway said. “Discipline problems are a very insignificant part of our day. It’s kind of a listening skills area, making sure students are engaged.”

St. Joseph Catholic School serves about 140 students from pre-kindergarten through the eighth grade.

A former ninth grade principal at Muskogee High School, Hattaway retired from Muskogee Public Schools in 2002. He spent more than three years at the Sylvan Learning Centers, a private tutoring and education program. He spent 30 years in education.

Brewer was an English instructor at MHS from 1970 to 1999 and conducts a “writing camp” day program each summer.