It is my honor and privilege to serve as the superintendent of the Merrillville Community School Corporation. During my first several months here, I have spent a great deal of time listening and learning about the many wonderful aspects of our schools, community, and students. I have had several meetings and conversations with our committed teachers, administrators, parents, and community members, and I look forward to our ongoing dialogue. Communicating and working with one another is the only way for our district to guarantee success for all of our students.
The conversations so far have painted a vivid picture of the Merrillville Community School Corporation. There is a wide range of programs and practices in place that are helping our students succeed every day. These conversations, along with additional analysis of the district, have also uncovered areas in need of attention and growth. This brief reflection of my first 100 days in the district will serve as the foundation for developing a shared strategic vision of the district that will articulate priorities and provide direction to ensure all of our students succeed.
I am proud to serve a community that is so committed to and proud of the traditions and students of the Corporation. There are many success stories and a very high capacity for excellence and caring among our faculty and staff. I’ve worked in and with schools for many years, and I can easily say that the Merrillville Community School Corporation contains some of the very best schools in Indiana! With continued hard work and a commitment to improving in key areas, we can become even better
As we move forward together, it is important to note that my administrative team and I hold the following core values/principles:
EVERYTHING THAT MATTERS BEGINS AND ENDS INSIDE THE CLASSROOM
Great teachers and high quality instruction are at the core of everything we do:
- We must retain and attract the very best teachers
- Our evaluation process has to focus on support for and improvement of all teachers and instructional practices
- We must provide state-of-the-art technology to support high quality instruction
ADMINISTRATORS EXIST TO MAKE TEACHERS AND INSTRUCTION THE BEST THEY CAN BE
- Everything we do has to be viewed through that lens
WE ARE TRANSPARENT, HONEST, AND DIRECT WITH ALL STAKEHOLDERS
WE WILL CREATE A CULTURE ACROSS THE DISTRICT THAT IS WARM, WELCOMING AND EMBRACES
ALL OF OUR STUDENTS, FAMILIES, STAFF, AND ALL OTHER STAKEHOLDERS...NO MATTER WHAT
Our overall mission is to successfully prepare every single student to walk the path they are destined to walk by facilitating their intellectual, social, and emotional growth.
I want to thank everyone in our school community for helping with my transition into the Merrillville Community School Corporation. With your help, we can take our Corporation to new heights of excellence.