An impactful leadership role is open for hiring at Newton High School. Principal Blake Smith has announced that he will be leaving to pursue a different career. Smith has been a part of the Newton Administration for five years, serving as an assistant principal for three and a head principal for two. Smith plans to move to Dallas, Texas, and pursue public relations through his knowledge of journalism.
Over Christmas break, Smith began to think about his decision to leave NHS to give the district enough time to fill such a demanding position. USD 373 Superintendent, Fred VanRanken, has the responsibility of finding a new principal who will lead and relate to students effectively. Smith said he has grown a lot over the past five years and will always love NHS.
“I think [my experience at NHS] has opened my eyes to a lot of student’s situations, like family situations and life situations, that I didn’t experience growing up. It has built more empathy and understanding which is something that I will take away,” Smith said. “I’m also more understanding that if there are issues, it’s not always me, it could be something that somebody else is going through.”
The students and staff are what Smith said he will miss the most, he feels that the admin has really made an impact and positively affected student’s lives. There are some goals that Smith is leaving behind and unfinished.
“I hope NHS can continue to offer more opportunities to students especially when it comes to college credit or internships,” Smith said. “I also hope to see truancy go down, I think that’s a major goal and also looking for more ways to prepare students for life after high school.”
Assistant Principal Tiffany Stephey hopes to see someone fill the role who is transparent and always keeps the kids in mind. Stephey said that to allow the culture of the school to stay positive and consistent, the admin strives to run as if any day one staff member could leave.
“I hope [the new principal] is someone who is easy to talk to, I can’t imagine he or she wouldn’t be, but I think communication is very important, not just among administrators but throughout the whole building,” Stephey said. “I hope they keep everything transparent and make people feel comfortable coming in and talking about any concerns or any good things that are happening in the building.”
VanRanken is looking for someone who can lead the building in a similar way to how Smith is now. The new RailerTime rules, created by Smith, were initially added to the NHS schedule to allow students to structure their day and improve their time management skills.
“I think we need to take more time to provide kids with opportunities to be able to structure their learning themselves because when you leave here, whether you’re going to college or the workplace or a vocational school if you don’t have good time management capacity it can be hard for you,” VanRanken said.
VanRanken desires for the diversity of the school and community to be honored and represented throughout the hiring of a new principal. Interview dates for the new position have been set for late March.
“[Blake] is a very good person and he does a really good job here as a high school principal. I hate to see him go, he’s been a really great asset,” VanRanken said.
