Many people, including students, believe that being a principal is hard. School principals have a lot of work to do day by day. That is true, but it all depends on their ability to manage their time wisely and keep everything under control. One school principal does just that, and makes it seem like being a principal is an easy job.
Robert Ambrose has been a principal at Independence High School for 16 years. After working at Independence High School for so long, Ambrose decided it was time to retire. Throughout the 16 years of being a principal, he said his favorite thing ever was “the teachers, students working together to build futures, and the friendships he’s developed.” Since the day he started, Ambrose enjoyed working as principal at the school. He loves to work in education because he believes he’s doing “good things for kids.”
Ambrose’s daily responsibilities as a principal include: making sure the teachers are doing their jobs and making sure each classroom has a teacher present, problem-solving, making sure goals are being reached everyday, dealing with emergencies, and many more. Even though these daily activities seem easy, Ambrose explained that it was “difficult throughout the years.” Something he does go through with his admin team is the struggle to get on the same page because everybody has different perspectives on how something should be taught or presented. But at the end of the day, what he does each day is worth it for the benefit of others because Ambrose believes that with difficulties, there will always be a positive outcome.
Before becoming a principal, Ambrose was a teacher and it wasn’t until his seventh year of teaching that he realized he wanted to become a school principal. While teaching, he said he would see “committees” and “administrative roles,” triggering the feeling inside of him that made him want to pursue becoming a principal. Ambrose wasn’t a regular teacher who would teach subjects. He said he taught a “school within a school,” meaning he was a teacher who helped students regain their credits for their classes, or students that were either always late to class or absent everyday. In his whole teaching career, Ambrose only taught one social studies class. However, he taught other classes such as “cabinet making”, welding, automotive repair, and an engineering science class, which was his all time favorite.
Outside his job, Ambrose loves to go on car shows, race events, and work on old cars. He’s been working with cars ever since he was a young child because when he was young, this was something he would always do with his dad, making it very special to Ambrose. He said he also “appreciates people who take care of cars that are extremely old” because he likes to see other people share the same passion as him. Before Ambrose pursued his education career, his first ever job was delivering bicycles. Later, he worked at a grocery store where he would stock and sweep, then sold car parts at AutoZone, and would do body shop paint work for cars.
When Ambrose retires, he hopes teachers will continue to feel supportive towards their students. He said he will miss working with his students because they were always making him laugh all the time and he could always interact positively towards everyone. His main reason for letting go of his job is because he has situations at home that he has to take care of. However, he plans to work part-time for some friends who own car shops, travel the world, and just enjoy the rest of his life while he can.
A piece of advice that Ambrose has for students is “school isn’t hard.” Ambrose said that there isn’t any possible way for you to NOT succeed because there’s always plenty of resources available at school and helpful teachers. He continued with “do what your teachers tell you to do and do it that same day. This way you’ll be successful.” It’s the student’s responsibility to wake up and go to school every day, make sure their work gets done, and ask for help if they need it. He believes that the better a student is at school, the better they will be throughout their life.
As for teachers, he advised them to find colleagues who are “positive about becoming teachers.” This job can be very stressful, but can be very rewarding once you find the right people to surround yourself with and once you prepare yourself to get the work done. For the new principal taking over Ambrose’s position, he advised them to “listen and trust.” Listen to and trust the people who are here, working or learning, because they’re doing great things for the school.
Ambrose’s biggest achievement overall for the school was “being able to be the leader that teachers appreciated, being able to facilitate an environment where kids can learn in a comfortable place, and having the resources students needed to reach their full potential.” He wishes the school would continue being great, even after he’s retired.
Upon finishing the interview, Ambrose said he didn’t want to retire, but it had to be done. He will miss working with his colleagues and the students here at Independence High School.
