After working at the school for 20 years, Assistant principal Andrew Worthington will be replacing David Morton as principal of the school.
Morton says the decision to make Worthington principal was based on Worthington’s experience and background in curriculum.
“He has a strong knowledge of the school, knows the students well, knows our teachers really well, and understands kind of where we’ve been and where we’re trying to go,” Morton said.
Since 2001, Morton has served as both president and principal of the school. Starting July 1, Worthington will run the day-to-day operations as principal, while Father Rick Stansberry will become the outward face of the school as president.
With the new job, Worthington will take on more responsibilities, such as issues relating to athletics or behavior, and will generally deal with a wider range of situations while passing some responsibilities involving academics and admission off to other administrators.
“They’ll still be things that I’m responsible for obviously as principal, but I may not be directly doing some of those jobs, so I can focus more time on the school administration side of things, which is very exciting,” Worthington said.
Because of the time his new role will take up, Worthington might have to give up some coaching responsibilities.
“I’m lucky enough that I get to coach and do some things now which I really enjoy, so some of those things I may not have enough time to do, but I don’t think there’ll be too much of an impact,” Worthington said. “I think I’ve just got the ability to do more and be able to have a bigger impact.
Worthington says he thinks his experience in a number of different positions at the school will influence how he runs it.
“You know, I always want to get better and learn more because I don’t know everything, but having knowledge of being in the classroom and coaching and clubs is obviously going to help with understanding how the school runs and what’s needed,” Worthington said.
So far, the decision to make Worthington principal has been met with support and enthusiasm.
“The support from the community and the students and the families has been very kind of positive, and I appreciate all of that kind of goodwill that’s been shared,” Worthington said.
Along with any new job, comes the effect it might have on his family, which Worthington says was a major factor in deciding to accept the position.
“I’ve had such support, obviously from my wife and the kids, which is really important,” Worthington said. “That’s what makes it. I’m not here because of my abilities. I’m here because I’ve got a family who supports me doing these things.
Worthington’s wife, history teacher Jennifer Collins-Worthington says the decision involved not just her and her husband, but the whole family.
“He did ask, you know, both me and all four kids if they were okay with it because clearly it will affect more than just him,” Collins-Worthington said. “In the next three years, all of us will have been through this building. He and I didn’t have the experience of having our parent be a principal at our school, so we wanted to make sure they were okay with that. If one of them had said no, we would have reconsidered, but they were all okay with it.”
As a teacher, Collins-Worthington is optimistic about the future with Worthington as principal.
“As a teacher in the building, I’m glad it’s him because I think it’ll be really a good positive force,” Collins-Worthington said.
History teacher Laney Maguire offers a unique perspective of the situation, having been Worthington’s student in both high school and college, and having worked with him for nine years.
“I feel like for as much as he’s seen me grow up, I’ve seen him grow up too, from just being a teacher and a soccer coach to being an administrator to now being the principal,” Maguire said
Because of their long history, Maguire has confidence in Worthington’s ability to do the job well.
“He just has such a wealth of knowledge on so many different topics, whether it’s how the classroom looks and works or building curriculum, so I think he’s a really good choice for the school, and he’s someone who’s invested a lot of his life into the growth of this school, so I feel great about it,” Maguire said.
At this point, Worthington said he does not plan on making any drastic changes to the school, but continuing what the community has already built.
“What we need to do is just make sure that we live as a witness to Christ, and that we’re able to work for the good of others and for the good of the school,” Worthington said.
Maguire says she thinks it is hard to fill the shoes of someone like Morton because of the vast amount of time he’s worked at the school, but that Worthington will be able to continue what has already been started.
“I really think he’ll be able to bring change without challenging any of the kind of traditions and things of our school,” Maguire said.
Because of the support of Worthington’s family, the school community, and the school administration, Worthington is enthusiastic about the new opportunities his position will present.
“I’m ready to go and ready just to learn and be better,” Worthington said.
