Charles Miller could retire. The former principal of Raymond’s Jordan Small Middle School has served students in Maine as both a teacher and administrator for the past 30 years. And when he accepted his position at Jordan Small three years ago, he thought it would be his last job before retirement.
But instead, Miller has chosen to take on a new challenge as the No Child Left Behind Coordinator for the elementary schools in SAD 72. In addition to his duties as coordinator, Miller will be the principal of the elementary schools in Brownfield and Denmark.
His decision came last January, when he realized how much he enjoyed his interactions with younger children.
“After people said, ‘You’re great with the younger kids – did you ever think of doing this?’ I began to think of doing this,” Miller said. “I always taught younger students in the summers. I took this position as a chance to try something different.”
Miller and his wife moved to Raymond three years ago when he was “hired as the first principal to bring back the eighth graders to the new middle school.”
At that time, Miller said, all the increased demands on middle schools mandated by the state, along with new faculty, programs, and activities, made his job a “daunting task.”
“The hardest part is that you have to create a new atmosphere, a new environment,” Miller said. “Building a new school is sort of like flying a plane down the runway before you’ve put the wings on.”
Miller praised the efforts of Jack Fitch, who organized the activities and athletics at the new middle school.
“It was not about who had the best teams,” Miller said. “His philosophy was getting every child involved. And 95 percent of the kids were involved. He was the heart of that program.”
Miller also raved about the rest of the Jordan Small staff.
“This is the best staff I’ve ever worked with,” he said. “People don’t realize the quality of the teaching staff and support staff they have here in Raymond. That’s the hardest part of my leaving – the people I’m leaving.”
Even so, the pull to return to using his training as a literacy specialist was strong. Miller said that during his years at Jordan Small, he would go over to the reading teacher’s room at the elementary school and let the children read to him.
“I thought, this is just a great moment for me,” Miller said.
When he told Superintendent Sandra Caldwell in January of his decision to work as an elementary principal, he said she was “very gracious” and helped him in his process. Caldwell was unavailable for comment.
Then, during budget talks, the school board discussed the option of a K-8 school.
Many recent educational articles have shown the K-8 model to be beneficial to all students. Miller believes this is because it keeps the adolescents from growing up too fast and develops a nurturing atmosphere where they feel more a part of the school and the community.
And, while he says the board’s decision was not made simply to save money, “it is very responsible to save ten to fifteen thousand dollars if you can.”
He believes that Norma Richard, who has been the principal of Raymond Elementary School and will now be principal of both schools, will do an excellent job, citing her prior experience as a K-8 principal.
Richard, in turn, speaks highly of Miller.
“I think he has a lot of compassion for children and a good understanding of their emotional needs,” Richard said. “He will be a great role model for students because he is compassionate. And having worked in middle school, he sees where kids are going.”
Miller may be leaving his position at Jordan Small, but he and his wife have no intention of leaving Raymond. They want to remain in the house they’ve been fixing up for the past three years – the house on the hill Miller used to survey from the lake when he attended Boy Scout camp years ago.
And Miller is still committed to serving the community of Raymond. Recently, he was elected by the Raymond Board of Selectmen to a two-year term as an alternate member of the newly created Board of Assessment Review.
While he looks forward to the challenges of his new position, Miller also reflects on his time as the principal of Jordan Small Middle School.
“I enjoyed it,” he said fondly. “It will be the best memory of my career.”
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