As if a whiff of fall in the air wasn’t enough, the unexpected resignation last week of regional high school principal Gil Traverso put summer officially on notice.

Too soon Island children and teachers will be headed back to a school system facing unusual if not unprecedented leadership change. The long-planned retirement this spring of Vineyard schools superintendent Dr. James Weiss after ten years set off a chain reaction of role changes at the top of the Martha’s Vineyard school district. Assistant superintendent Matthew D’Andrea was tapped for the superintendent’s job and in turn hired Oak Bluffs principal Richard Smith as assistant superintendent. Mr. Smith’s job in Oak Bluffs was then filled by John Rizzo, an educator from Springfield.

Managing a dynamic roster is a big part of any superintendent’s job, but Mr. D’Andrea wasn’t expecting to have to focus on the high school so soon. Billed as a charismatic leader who would bring new energy to the high school, Mr. Traverso had not yet completed the first year of a three-year contract when he announced he was moving on, just weeks before another school year begins.

In fact, Mr. Traverso had begun to shake things up at the high school. In contrast to his immediate predecessor he was highly visible on campus and around the Island, taking the time to meet his students and greet them by name. Just a few months into his tenure he led the school committee on an embarrassing public tour of the school’s deteriorating physical plant, pointing out mildew, broken windows, poor ventilation and rodent problems. A former vocational school principal, he had set his sights on updating the school’s approach to job skills training.

In describing his reasons for leaving, he cited the Island’s high cost of living and shortage of affordable housing. These issues are well known and serious, but surely could have been foreseen by the principal before he made a three-year commitment. We don’t know what Mr. Traverso might have accomplished had he stuck around, but his untimely departure was surely a disappointment for students.

If there is a bright side, it is Mr. D’Andrea’s decisive action in appointing Peg Regan, who presided over the high school from 1999 to 2008, to serve as interim principal while a new search is underway. An active member of the Vineyard community, Mrs. Regan stayed in education even after her retirement, most recently as director of career and continuing education for ACE MV. At the least, she will bring stability to the high school while Mr. D’Andrea and Mr. Smith get acclimated to their new roles.

And there is much to be done. The Vineyard is blessed with top-notch schools and a community that supports education, but the last few years have tested the community’s willingness to quietly accept steadily increased spending. Voters’ refusal at town meeting time to approve a needed new building for the superintendent was just one indication of a new wave of cost concern. Figuring out how to address deferred maintenance on many school buildings, including the high school, in this climate will be one of many challenges for the new administration.

For now, Mr. D’Andrea has passed his first test.