Replacing the leader of a high-performing organization is never easy. But that’s what Haywood County Schools did this week after the March departure of a longtime superintendent who led the district to new heights. But as the district looks to the future, it didn’t have to look far for a replacement. With more than 7,000 students, Haywood County is home to the largest public school system west of Buncombe County. It’s also one of the best anywhere in the state. In each of the past two years, Haywood County has ranked 11th in academic performance out of 115 North Carolina school systems. “In the last four years Haywood County Schools has made some very good progress,” said Haywood County Schools Board of Education Chairman Chuck Francis. “We’re now ranked in the top 10 percent in the state and it’s due to a lot of hard work with our personnel, our people. The board makes policy decisions, and we let our folks, administrators, do the day-to-day operations and they are the ones that do