|
Catharine Blaine K-8 School |
|
Principal’s Page |
|
Catharine Blaine K-8 School Principal: Heather Swanson heswanson@seattleschools.org 2550 34th Avenue West Seattle, Washington 98199 Office: 252-1920 Fax: 252-1921 24-hour Attendance Line: 252-1924 |
|
Greetings to the Catharine Blaine Community!
I am thrilled to be serving as your Principal for the upcoming school year. For those of you who are new to Blaine I served as the Assistant Principal for the last year and a half and I am excited to carry on the work we have begun. I am a local girl having completed my Masters in Curriculum and Instruction at Seattle Pacific University. This is also where I earned my Administrative credentials. I taught Language Arts/Social Studies and Reading in the Seattle School District. Prior to my work at Blaine I interned at Eckstein Middle School as well as Sanislo Elementary. Combined, I believe all of these experiences helped to give me the background to be successful at a K-8. I am also very appreciative of the support I have received from Blaine community members and from the District. We are all in this together, and I am a firm believer that our strength lies in being a community that works together. I had the opportunity to spend time this summer in Africa, and I can’t even begin to explain how magical the trip was. I camped in the Serengeti, listened to hyenas in the night, watched warthogs in the brush, and was intimidated by a very large elephant. A highlight of the trip that I will carry with me into the school year is the visit I took to Kambi Ya Nyoka PR School in Tanzania. I sat in on a 3rd and 7th grade class, talked to students at recess and spent some time with the teachers. What I walked away with was a deep sense of community. Children were deeply cared for and I was amazed at how much was being done with very little. This visit made clear for me the need for us to focus and use our resources strategically.
I am excited to move into the school year with four clear objectives in mind:
· Support and development of Balanced Literacy in all classrooms. This includes the work that we have begun in Writer’s Workshop.
· Support and development of Everyday Math and Connected Math Project (Middle School math curriculum)
· Creation of learning teams to analyze student work in order to make strategic instructional decisions
· Well-being of staff
Finally, I thank you for entrusting your students to us at Catharine Blaine. Committing to a school is a big and important decision, and I believe the strength of our community is our greatest asset. You can trust me to listen to your concerns, to celebrate your successes, and to care for your students.
Best regards, Heather Swanson |
