Preparing for the School Year:School Principals Discuss Their Thoughts On New School Building

By Kate Anslinger

Earlier this week High School Principal Matt Crombie and Middle School Principal Brian Curley took a break from the big school move, to share their thoughts on the future of the brand new building and some special moments they are looking forward to.

On Sept. 6, 900 middle school and high school students will enter the new building for the first time ever.

“Watching the students’ faces on that first day is going to be really special,” said Crombie.

“Just the new technology alone is going to be something special,” said Curley, who is looking forward to handing out 500 chrome books to his middle school students. Grades 6-8 will be required to keep the books in the classroom and grades 9-12 will be given the opportunity to take them at the end of the day for home use.

The next few months are crucial for the two principals who share a common background. Both Curley and Crombie taught in classrooms next door to one another for seven years prior to Crombie stepping up to his role as principal. Crombie served as a special education teacher and Curley a math and business teacher. While the two subjects are contrasting, the two educators share a common bond and a similar approach in how they want the building to run and be maintained and they are both working hard to ensure the new school will be a positive environment for everyone.

The majority of Curley’s time will be spent on scheduling and easing the student and parent needs. He will also focus on ensuring proper curriculum planning for the 10 new teachers that have been hired to fill the need of the new structure.

Crombie, who has spent a lot of time in building meetings, will continue to play a lead role in future meetings and furniture deliveries, alongside Curriculum Director Frank Woods. Deliveries will be in full force all day every day for the next three weeks.

“There will also be a lot of time spent on scheduling, routines and all of the little details that will come up as we ease into the new building. While some things are hard to forecast, we will do our best to prepare.”

One of the major changes that may be an adjustment for teachers will be the new teaching space layout, which is designed to be more like a college atmosphere, where teachers will change spaces to cater to the class rather than having their own designated classroom for the entire year.

“This may be an adjustment, but I think the teachers will really enjoy the space and they won’t get distracted by students walking by,” said Crombie. “All teachers will be grouped by department and assigned to a workspace that will be equipped with an assigned desk, storage space and large conference desks for team collaboration.”

In addition to these preparations and an open house, the high school student council will be putting on an orientation at the end of August, in hopes of giving some students a chance to get acclimated to the new building. Both Crombie and Curley are set on making sure the school stays in top shape.

“We are on a mission to make sure the building is respected by both students and staff,” said Crombie. “It’s up to us to keep the momentum going forward.”