Principal Hired!

Our high school principal is retiring at the end of this school year which, of course, means that we have to find a new one. Some idiotic demented stupid...scratch that.....brilliant person knew that I would be a wonderful addition to the hiring committee, so I was asked to be involved in the hiring process. After some meetings to review applications, check references, compare notes, etc., we interviewed six applicants this past Tuesday. It was almost a 12-hour day of interviewing, touring, eating, snacking, interviewing, touring, lunch, dinner.....a LONG day. I didn't expect so much food to be involved!

In any case, our new principal is now officially hired! He's been in the education business for many moons, and has literally done it ALL! Teacher, coach, principal, superintendent.....you name it, he's done it. The thing that really excited us about this guy? He HAS done it all and wants to finish his career with daily interaction with KIDS. For me, that was a big positive. I think that a high school principal needs to like kids more than power. He has a resume and a stack of references that would allow him to go anywhere and do any job in education. But he wants to be in a small school in Southwest Washington and work with KIDS. YOU'RE HIRED!!!

And perhaps even more interesting for me was getting to know some of our other school leaders in this process of hiring. Some of the teachers on the committee were my teachers in high school. All of them have had or will have my children in class at some point. The school board members are all fellow parents and community members that I know to various degrees. The other community members asked to participate are also known to me, in one form or other. I even knew all the students involved in the process. The dynamics of such a diverse group trying to make a complex decision was fascinating to be a part of!! Every applicant that interviewed had positive attributes and it was fascinating to see how different views weigh the different strengths.

Perhaps, most interesting of all, was watching our superintendent interact and lead the entire group. I've never worked with Steve on a project before--he has always struck me as very quiet and maybe a even little withdrawn. I walked away from this process with newfound respect. He did a really outstanding job focusing the group and making sure that everyone had the opportunity to contribute.

In any case, I think we did a fantastic job and look forward to getting to know our new principal. I'm honored to have been a part of this process, and was impressed by the passion that everyone brought to this challenge. Welcome Aboard, Principal Dale Bowen!!!