And then there were five! The rest of the new administration consists of Mrs. Orange, Dr. Smith, and Mr. Sippel, who all shared their views on what changes they have witnessed this school year so far.

Although Mrs. Orange is not new to John Muir, this is her first year as the official Principal. Last year, Orange was an Interim Principal, or a “temporary” principal. The enthusiastic Principal said that, “The biggest change at Muir is the spirit of unity.” She elaborated, explaining how students are now going to class, are no longer hiding, and overall are being nicer to each other. Mrs. Orange also thought that the older students are acting as positive role models, and a number of students that were once performing poorly have turned around and made incredible improvements. “I’m just so proud to be the Principal of John Muir,” she ended with a smile.

Mr. Sippel, who is in charge of coordinating the Academies, said that teachers are continuing to refine the career technical classes. He added that they are articulating what is working and modifying their curriculums to work with PCC standards in order for students to receive college credit. “Teachers are troubleshooting,” he explained. He expressed that he found a recent Town Hall meeting effective because ideas came directly from teachers. Following the structure of last month’s article (informal questions were also asked), Sippel was asked what his favorite type of music and food was. “I enjoy Christian Worship music…and instrumental jazz. My favorite food would be Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza.”

Dr. Smith, who makes the third Assistant Principal, described how she sees the new system. She believes that the core group of teachers with the same students is one of the most important changes. She focused particularly on the 9th graders because the academies, she said, gives them “a sense of identity. They [academies] are key for 9th graders..to cocoon them, to provide that foundation to learn successful student skills.” Dr. Smith’s favorite musical performer is Maze featuring Frankie Beverly and she likes Asian food, especially Tai and Chinese.

The new administrators at John Muir all have a positive agenda that they are each working diligently to complete. Each administrator specializes in a certain area, and clearly, they all have something effective to bring to the table. Whatever happens this school year, our administrators seemed prepared for anything.