Huron Expositor, 2007-09-12, Page 8.1 j" I
Page 8 The Huron Expositor • September 12, 2007
News
New faces behind principals' desks at CHSS
Laurie Langstaff is new principal and John Brown is new vice principal
Jennifer Hubbard
allaMIEMEMED
There were two new faces sitting
behind the principals' desks at
CHSS last week as students
returned to classes for the 2007-08
school year.
Laurie Langstaff and John Brown
are the school's new principal and
vice-principal, respectively, filling
the vacancies left by Herb Klassen
and Sheila Jankowski.
Both newcomers said they were
looking forward to the upcoming
year.
"I'm really looking forward to the
year here at CHSS. I think it'll be a
great experience. I like the mix of
rural and town," Langstaff said,
noting she grew up on a farm near
Dresden and attended a school simi-
- lar to CHSS.
"This school seems to have strong
community ties and I'm looking for-
ward to being a part of that."
Langstaff moved to CHSS from
Stratford Central, where she was
the principal of both the public and
secondary schools for three years.
Prior to that she was the secondary
school principal and vice-principal.
Langstaff started her career
teaching English and history at St.
Marys District Collegiate and
Vocational Institute. She was a
guidance counsellor and later head-
ed the department.
As a new property owner in St.
Joseph, Langstaff said she was
lucky to be transferred to the
Clinton school.
Formerly the vice-principal of
Branksome Hall, a girls' private
school in Toronto, Brown said he's
glad to be getting back into the pub-
lic school system.
"It was a combination of career
advancement and the opportunity to
live in a much more congenial set-
ting... Huron County," he said of his
decision to make the move to CHSS.
"Private schools are great and
they have their place, but public
schools like CHSS offer a lot more
diversity in their programs, a little
something for everyone.
"I think we really meet more
needs at a school like this as far as
capturing the interests of the stu-
dents."
And while the two new adminis-
trators know they will definitely
face some challenges, Langotaff and
Brown said the staff and students
have been very supportive.
Looking ahead to the school year,
Langstaff said she plans to "see
what works well" at CHSS, before
attempting to make any changes.
"Then I'll meet with staff and the
school improvement committee so
that we can make those decisions
Jennifer Hubbard photo
Laurie Langstaff moved from Stratford
Central to become the new principal at
CHSS while John Brown moved from
Branksome Hall in Toronto to become
the new vice principal.
together," she added.
One major project on the list is
the school's fundraising campaign
for its new gymnasium. Currently
focussed on getting the year started,
Langstaff said she's looking forward
to becoming involved in the ongoing
efforts.
Construction continued at the
school throughout the summer, with
the installation of a new sound sys-
tem. Two change rooms are also
being renovated.
Brown said he'd also like to
become more involved in the CHSS
community once he's settled.
"Left to my own devices I'd be in
the auto shop helping them build a
drag racer, but there's not a lot of
time to do that," he laughed. "You
can take the boy out of the auto
shop, but you can't take the auto '
shop out of the boy."
Klassen and Jankowski both
announced they would be leaving
the CHSS last -spring, after four
years at the school.
Jankowski retired after a 35 -year
career in education and Klassen is
the new principal at Listowel
District Secondary School.
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