As the delivery trucks backed up last week, new Gorham High School Principal Chris Record turned his head to get a better look at the vehicles, then abruptly ended his conversation with a person in the guidance office.

“They’re here,” he exclaimed, as he quickly exited the office to meet the trucks outside the high school. “The picnic tables are here. This is so exciting.”

The tables are part of Record’s plan to allow seniors to enjoy lunch or break time outside in the school quad, and is just one of many student-friendly goals he has in mind during his first year on the job.

“This is big for the seniors,” Record said. “I forgot to mention this to them during their assembly this morning, but I think they’re going to love it.”

Understanding the students and not being just an authority figure is how Record wants to run Gorham High School, which opened Aug. 28. Record replaces John Drisko this year, after Drisko left to be principal at North Yarmouth Academy.

“I personally think that’s important for any administrator at any level,” Gorham School Board member Dennis Libby said. “As an administrator it’s more than just working with the teachers and staff and he ‘s setting a tone within the school that everybody is living by.”

Record, 36, who is married and the father of two children, developed his beliefs when he began his teaching career in 1995 in North Carolina after graduating from Bates College in Lewiston. He worked in the intensive Wilderness Education program started by Eckard Pharmacy’s Youth Alternatives. The program was designed for students who were either going to jail or could go through the program for one year, Record said.

“It’s a wilderness program and the kids go there for a year and the teachers stay with them 24 hours per day, five days a week,” Record said. “It’s very intense educationally and very intense behaviorally to try and make the kids make better choices educationally and feel better about themselves … but it was a super experience.”

Working with those students taught Record dedication and patience, he said. He used that intense time to help him shape his goal of being a high-energy teacher at Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School, where he taught social studies before becoming the assistant principal.

“I really enjoyed looking at the big picture and affecting change,” Record said about his decision to take on the challenge of an administrative role. “I want to improve teaching and improve learning.”

The students witnessed his drive and ambition first hand during Gorham’s opening day of school as Record explained his goals for the school during senior, junior and sophomore assemblies. Record said he wants to keep kids involved in the school be it through athletics, Key Club, arts or music.

“Can’t you just feel the energy?” Record asked school police officer Mike Drown at 9:30 in the morning before heading into the senior’s session.

“I think we’ve found a great principal,” Drown said. “He seems to really care about the students and is energetic. I think you really need that and he’s going to be a great guy to have around.”

As each class sat through a 10-minute “meet-your-principal” session, Record introduced himself, told them that he knows they are concerned or might not have known there was a new principal, reassured the students that he was there for them and was looking out for their best interests.

“I know some of you woke up this morning and said ‘Who is this guy?’ or said to yourself ‘We have a new principal?'” Record said to each class. “I don’t want you to think that a lot will change, because it won’t, but I want to get to know each and every one of you.”

After the assembly, Record began making good on that promise as he walked the halls and introduced himself to any student that he didn’t recognize before returning to his office. There, he checked his numerous voice mail messages and read his 20 or so e-mails and went into administrative mode.

“It’s not an easy job,” he said. “I love it, but you are the last line of defense, and there are issues that need to be dealt with.”

As soon as he sat down at his desk after an hour or so of meeting and greeting, he began working the phones to deal with a student in the Gorham Middle School whose parents felt should be kept in eighth grade but the academic report supported the student being a freshman.

Record smiled as he hung up the phone and said that he believed the student should be in the ninth grade.

“Studies have shown that keeping a kid back isn’t the most effective approach,” Record said.

As the day progressed, he spoke with guidance and learned that a 19-year-old student was thinking about dropping out. Even though Record said the information disturbed him, he smiled again and told the guidance counselor to send the student to his office.

“Our job is to help them get ready for post-secondary options,” he said. “Whether that’s college, trade school or finding a job after graduation, it is our responsibility to help them get there.”

Guidance issues, while big, were only a small part of what Record handled on his first full school day. As lunch time rolled around he walked the cafeteria looking more like a presidential candidate than a principal, shaking students’ hands, smiling and asking them questions about the school, who they are and then telling them a little about himself. He moved from table to table to sit down with students, engaging them in conversations.

He then met some vocational students, most of whom didn’t have class that day because they go to the Portland Arts and Technology High School in Portland, which didn’t open until this week.

He learned from each student, about 20 or so, what trade they wanted to explore after graduation. The inquisitive nature seemed genuine as Record spent nearly 20 minutes with the students.

“It’s about these kids,” he said. “I want to know them. I want to know who they are and I want them to truly succeed, not just academically, but also in life.”

As the day progressed, Record shifted his focus from the students to the teachers. Getting to know the students is great, but understanding the school’s teachers is “just as important,” he said.

He spotted a teacher in the waiting room outside his office.

“You’re just the person I want to see,” he said.

Record and the teacher sit in his office and began what he called an entry interview. It took about 20 minutes as Record asked him his opinions on the school, why he got into teaching, his goals, and so on. This one interview was one of 60 Record had completed in his first two months on the job.

“You can’t make change until you truly understand the big picture,” Record said. “These interviews take some time, but they are worth it in the end.”

As the school day neared an end, Record sat in his office, contemplated the day and joked with his staff.

“He’s going to be a great principal,” Record’s secretary, Debbie Stirling, said with a smile. “He has the energy for it.”

Record can’t predict how long he will be at Gorham High School or what each day will bring, but he said he will enter each day with a positive mind and understand that he is now a part of the Gorham community, its history and its future.

“He’s very energetic and he took the time to get to know people in the district and the school itself,” Libby said. “I think it’s very important to get to know your work surroundings so you can get some insight so when decisions need to be made, he’s got some background knowledge.”

Chris Record speaks with Gorham High School students on their first day of school Thursday afternoon. Record is the new Gorham High School Principal.

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