Every staff member in a school plays an important role in supporting students. One of the key decision-makers in the school is the Principal. We interviewed the Principal of Lawton Elementary Rose Marie Callahan to help you get to know her.
Educational background
Callahan grew up in the Detroit area and went to Ann Arbor Public Schools. She went to Eastern Michigan University for her undergraduate degree. Callahan then earned her masters in reading instruction through an online program through Walden University. Later on, she received her admin certification, also at Eastern University.
She spent the first 10 years of her career as a teacher at Bach Elementary, right down the street from Lawton Elementary. At Bach, Callahan taught primarily 1st and 2nd grade but occasionally looped up or had a multi-age classroom. During her time teaching, Callahan became interested in curriculum, standards and assessment. She spent the next 10 years of her career working at the central office in the curriculum instruction department. Her role was the math and science coordinator for all of Ann Arbor Public Schools elementary schools.
Callahan spent a few years at the Summer Learning Institute in the role of a teacher, curriculum developer and as principal at different times. Her opportunity to become the Principal there is what caused her to want to pursue her administrator certificate. After this, she became the assistant Principal at Thurston Elementary for a few years. About 4 years ago, she shifted into the role of Principal at Lawton.
School goals
Lawton is in the process of getting a new building. As a part of this, Callahan and her leadership team have been thinking through how to make the new building even more of a community resource.
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“Are there going to be rec and ed classes here? Is the campus going to be open before and after school? Can we utilize the building in some way to help the community?” Callahan described these as some of the questions they have been considering.
Callahan also described her goals for her students. “You know elementary school is such a special time and I want students to be here to feel safe and to be able to focus on their learning.” She said, “I want their individual needs to be met or addressed in a way that everyone is moving forward and growing in a way that they can be proud of.”
Callahan emphasized that her main goal for her staff is, “… to support them and how they want to develop and how they want to grow….and helping them meet the challenges of their roles today as instructional leaders. They wear so many hats, so I always want to think about that for our staff.”
Personal life
Callahan enjoys spending time with her family, especially outdoors. “I love to hike, I’ll walk anywhere with anybody at any time,” Callahan said. She also enjoys spending time on her boat. Callahan has been happily married for 35 years. She has 2 children, her daughter Brittnay and her son Brock.
Brock passed away during her first few years at Lawton. During this time, she describes the Lawton community wrapping around to support her, as they have done for many others in the community going through a hard time.
Callahan said, “I think we could do better as a community at talking about grief and talking about loss. It’s a topic that people often want to leave very quickly because it’s uncomfortable, but it is a part of life. I think it’s important to share…you can learn from someone else and their experience,” she said. Callahan also says that her experiences have helped her to be more compassionate and curious about her students and staff.
Highlights of principal life
Callahan described one of her favorite parts of being a principal as the fun unpredictability that kids bring.
“It’s just the things kids say and do, it just fills your bucket…they have this way of seeing the world and just they are honest with their questions and their curiosity is just so natural…even if it is challenging it keeps it fresh everyday,” she said.
Callahan also described loving working with teachers because she sees so much value in what they do.