This school year, IHS warmly welcomes a new principal, Caren Arnold, and two new associate principals, Julie McChesney and Terrance King. These three, along with Scott Briegle and Patrick Hovey, make up an optimistic and enthusiastic administrative team. Each of the new administrators reports cohesivity and camaraderie among the five of them. In particular, Principal Arnold stated that though each of the administrative staff has an area for growth, she curated her two hires such that each person’s strengths cover another’s weaknesses. So, what does each of these new administrators bring to the table?
Arnold has been in ICSD for thirty-three years. In that time, she’s served as a speech pathologist, early childhood educator, and elementary and high school administrator. She’s not new to working at the high school—she was the predecessor to Jen Dobmeier as the Director of Student Activities, an associate principal, and one of the main faculty behind the district’s transition to Canvas. Her years of experience as a student and staff member, working with and under diverse leadership, have formed who she is and how she plans to be as a principal. To her, this means being transparent with students and staff and knowing when to say “no” to requests, but also being open to student concerns and willing to work with kids to find optimal solutions. She says, “At the end of the day, I need to know I did right by students.” She encourages students to come find her or any of the associate principals if they ever have an issue–she wants students to understand the reasoning behind policies they might dislike and to help build better systems when the old ones fail to meet their needs.
McChesney also comes from a background in speech pathology. Though this is her first year in the district, it’s not her first time in administration: she was formerly an administrator at TST BOCES. She explains that she’s always loved the Ithaca culture and is excited to continue working in the area. When asked what it was about Ithaca that appealed to her, she answered, “This community, more than any of the ones around us, is working to include people of all backgrounds. I really wanted to be a part of that.” In particular, McChesney wants to work on building relationships between administration, staff, and students in order to strengthen the Ithaca community and school spirit. She says to expect to see her in the hallways, stopping in classrooms, and at major events in and out of the high school. She hopes students will likewise stop in her office and introduce themselves to her.
Lastly, as a Ph.D. student at Syracuse University with a focus in special education, King will be the first Black male to receive the terminal degree in the University’s history. He’s also a first-generation college graduate, and he says that “I decided in eleventh grade to really look into what college looks like […] I decided that college could make or break generational curses.” He encourages students to see him as inspiration and to understand that they can realize their own dreams, whatever those might be. Along with his special education background, King has been a teacher and substitute in the district and is a member of the St. James Church in downtown Ithaca. He says these experiences help him understand what it means to be Ithacan and connect with the history here, something he hopes to bring to students as well. He wants students to know that his door is always open if they want a piece of candy, a fidget, or someone to talk to. “Students don’t like to listen to administrators who don’t listen to them,” he explains. He goes further to tell students that “when they walk into this building, they are investing in their own power in society. This school is just a station or a springboard to what life will offer.”
Amid changes like the introduction of a new cell phone policy and contract turmoil in the district, having a reliable set of administrators at the center of IHS will be vital. Ms. Arnold, Ms. McChesney, and Mr. King bring new experiences, new goals, and new perspectives to the school, with which comes an exciting opportunity to rebuild community and school spirit. We can’t wait to see what these three bring to the IHS community.