Judy Wilson tours the hallways, "trying not to get lost."
By: Rachel Silverman
"Hi, guys, I just want to introduce myself," Superintendent Judy Wilson said to the five students working in Princeton High School’s computer lab. "I’ve just been walking around today, trying not to get lost," she laughed.
"This is a privilege guys, it’s not every day you see the principal making the rounds, and here we have the superintendent," substitute teacher Brent Ferguson said, glancing over at Ms. Wilson.
The students, who had not given much notice to Ms. Wilson before, perked up at the mention of the word superintendent and suddenly swiveled their chairs around to face her.
Immediately after introducing themselves, the group of freshmen began to barrage the new superintendent who has been on the job less than two weeks now with a steady stream of questions, opinions and complaints.
"Our small learning community yesterday was just all yelling," one student reported. "It was really annoying."
"I’m not sure how I feel about block scheduling," another student said. "I guess I would give it a try, but they’d have to teach differently to keep our attention," he said.
"I think if they’re thinking about changing things in the schedule, why not have our input?" a third asked.
Ms. Wilson listened to the students’ comments with interest.
"Thank you for your input," she said. "I’ll certainly put these things on my list."
Though she assumed her new role as superintendent less than two weeks ago, Ms. Wilson has already acquired a substantial to-do list, and has been kept busy by a hectic schedule of events.
"I’m extremely booked. There is a lot of territory to cover in a short amount of time," she said. "It’s a real crash orientation."
Her workdays so far have included meetings with PTO officers, teachers’ union representatives, Board of Education members, principals and staff; briefings on school security, facilities and technology programs; and meet-and-greet sessions with parents, students and community leaders.
"I’ve been working very aggressively on the budget," she said. "And I’m trying to get up to speed on construction issues for each (school) site. I’ve been taking home a huge stack of reading every night.
"I’m doing a full day in each of the six schools so I can put names and faces together," she said.
"Of course, at the bottom of it all is asking good questions and just observing in order to learn," Ms. Wilson emphasized.
And on Thursday morning at PHS, Ms. Wilson spent her time doing exactly that. The superintendent wandered from classroom to hallway, greeting students, faculty and support staff at every possible junction.
"Are you eager for the renovations?" she asked a science teacher.
"What are your plans for next year?" she said to a senior in the hall.
"Sports injury?" she questioned to a student with a cast over his leg.
And, as she went, Ms. Wilson listened to members of the PHS orchestra play a piece from "Hello Dolly," toured the student-run Numina art gallery and peeked into a physics classroom where students fiddled with Bunsen burners. Later, she ventured out to the temporary modular units for a drama class, introduced herself to the entire guidance department and observed a group of English-as-a-second-language students listening to a recording of "Romeo and Juliet."
"It’s only my fourth time in the building," Ms. Wilson said. "I think these little snapshots are my best way of learning things."
From conversations with teachers and students, Ms. Wilson heard comments about the school’s heating system, kinks in the Science Olympiad program and the lack of alternative classes, such as home economics and wood shop, available to the student body.
"It’s really easy to see why we need the renovations," Ms. Wilson observed, as she passed by open construction sites and signs of a decaying building.
And while Ms. Wilson wandered the building, she also learned how much she didn’t know about Princeton High School.
"Is that allowed?" she asked, pointing to a student whizzing by on his skateboard.
"Which way is the Numina Gallery?" she inquired.
"What do you do here?" she asked a teacher approached in the hallway.
Though Ms. Wilson certainly has her work cut out for her, her enthusiasm and commitment to the district seem wholehearted.
"It’s my nature to jump in full speed," she said. "There’s a lot of energy in that."

