Students were shocked and saddened to discover that Michelle Kalhorn, a current math teacher, would be surrendering her teachingposition to take on the role of Dean of Students. Ed Collins returned to the counseling office at the beginning of the semester to deal with scheduling demands, while Kalhorn will take on her new role as soon as MHS administrators hire someone to take her place. “I’m looking forward to a new role in the building and hope to have a positive impact on the staff and students,” stated Kalhorn.
While she is looking forward to her new job, she will also miss her previous one. “I’m going to miss getting to know kids really well and the level of student interaction,” she confessed. “I’m nervous about missing it too much.” Her students have also proved that they will miss her as much as she will miss them. “I’m going to miss the way she teaches and how happy she always is the most,” Senior Becky Compton commented. Another student, junior Briana Bailey, mentioned that she was different than other teachers. “She trusts us to do what we want when it comes to our homework and she tries to help us through it,” she said. “She treats us like we’re adults.”
Not only is this a wonderful opportunity for Kalhorn, it is one where she will be able to challenge herself and grow professionally. “It’s a totally different world where I will have to deal with different situations,” she remarked. “I’m excited because it’s different.”
The Dean of Students position, a stepping stone to becoming an administrator, is mainly in charge of dealing with attendance, tardy issues, and following up with students. The dean supports the vice principals with administrative discipline and also works with administration to help plan professional development days for the staff. Mr. Collins has performed the duties of the Dean of Students for the past two and a half years, and decided it was time to make the switch back to the counseling office. He is going to miss it in some ways, and his goal is to try and continue to know as many kids as he can. “My favorite thing about being in education is the kids,” he commented with a huge smile on his face.
As a counselor, he wants to do whatever he can to help fulfill students’ dreams, and to help steer them in a direction that will enable them to achieve their goals. Collins stated to the students “Our goal is to keep you happy, healthy and safe,” he said. He’s looking forward to being a counselor again because he hasn’t changed. “I can touch thousands of lives,” Collins remarked. “How lucky is that?”
