Laura Kattilakoski, Rowan Khazendar, and Corbin Rubinson
Staff writers

Coppell High School has a long tradition of excellence and this year is no exception. As the year begins, four new assistant principals have joined the Cowboy community and are excited to make their mark on CHS.

                With a school as big as CHS, one principal cannot oversee all of the responsibilities and run the school single-handedly. For this reason, assistant principals help out in almost every aspect of the school.

So what does an assistant principal do? The word every administrator seems to use is “everything”. From working with teachers to student discipline, assistant principals influence and impact about every student at CHS, whether the students realize it or not.

                “Our job includes everything,” freshman Assistant Principal Anne Beckman said. “I work with teachers, work with kids and discipline, and meet with parents.”

                The upperclassmen APs have similar tasks.

“We all have certain parts of the alphabet, which extends our jurisdiction to about 500 kids each,” 10-12 grade AP Michelle Kellen said. “I deal with discipline, substitutes, and arranging SPUR.”

These new administrators come from several different backgrounds, Beckman taught for 16 years as a math teacher in various elementary schools, and then she was an assistant principal for two years at Austin Elementary.

“I worked at an elementary school and then I was a principal during summer school,” Beckman said. “I was asked if I wanted to teach at CHS and I said yes because it is a great school. I’ve been in the classroom for some time and I wanted to continue my education and get my Masters [Degree] to become an Administrator.”

Kellen on the other hand, has taught at Colleyville Heritage High School for 13 years as a basketball coach. She also worked as an intern for two years with Colleyville Heritage for teaching experience. On top of all that she has taught AP Psychology for the last seven years at Colleyville Heritage.  

“Being a Colleyville Heritage intern allowed me to affect more kids,” Kellen said. “Not just 100 [kids], but I could impact an entire school.”

                For Deana Harrell, the new associate principal at CHS, the leap from their previous position into their new administrator’s position has been difficult. She previously taught and administered at elementary schools. While she loves her new job at the high school, she said that leaving behind the elementary age group was a tough decision.

“[The children] are fun, they’re so excited about learning [and] everything is magical,” Harrell said. “There’s that innocence about childhood, there’s that enthusiasm of learning, wanting to just hit the ground running all the time. Plus they say some really funny things.”

                Harrell’s move to teaching at the high school has allowed her to see the educational skills taught to children in elementary schools in action and being applied to real world situations.

                “As administrators even at the elementary level, we know we’re preparing students to get here… but to actually be here… and no matter what choices you make at Coppell High School… you are involved and engaged, whether it’s learning or something extracurricular,” Harrell said.

                Other administrators, such as Beckman, agreed.

 “The kids, definitely the high school kids, are so fun and creative and it’s just great getting to know [them],” Beckman said.