By Jackie Pollack
Now that school has been in session for a few weeks, I sat down with the new principal, Ms. GM, to hear about her experience at IHS so far.
Ms. GM commented on her excitement to finally have the opportunity to meet the entire student body and to have the hallways bustling with students. Luckily, she was already familiar with many seniors who came to the school during the last two weeks of August. These students created posters with positive messages which adorn our school. Ms. GM was very happy with the results and hopes that it will become a senior tradition for the future.
The welcoming barbecue was one of Ms. GM’s greatest highlights so far. She beamed at how the entire school came together to enjoy lunch and each other’s company. She also admired the invested parents who voluntarily helped prepare the school’s lunch by grilling.
Ms. GM’s primary hope for the school year is to ensure that everyone feels safe, comfortable, and respected at all times. With that foundation, she believes that students will be able to engage, effectively learn, and will eventually be able to make connections beyond the classroom. Likewise, she hopes that students’ relationships between peers and staff will continue to flourish so everyone can foster close connections.
She is also excited for IHS to continue shouting out positive members of our school community.
It is important to Ms. GM that everyone is familiar with all of the resources available in the building. The school counselors, psychologists, student assistance counselor and all of our other teachers and staff members are accessible to anyone seeking advice.
One of Ms. GM’s goals is to elicit from parents and stakeholders what is working well in the school and things that we need to re-examine. She wants students to have a voice in the decisions made for our school, for they will be directly impacting them.
On that note, (although Ms.GM hopes to share more about it soon) there are still no definitive next steps regarding the proposed master schedule.
Ms. GM’s advice to students going into the new school year is to challenge and liberate themselves- to take risks and to be okay with making mistakes.
Ms. GM wants students to remember that, “Everybody at school is a learner and we have to be easier on ourselves and look at mistakes as opportunities to learn and grow!”
Ms. GM is looking forward to a wonderful school year! She encourages you to check out her Twitter for updates. Twitter handle: @JGevargisMizi
