The public will get a chance to meet and get to know the four finalists for the West Park Elementary School principal position on April 4 at the school library.
The “Meet & Greet” session will be held from 2:45 to 4:45 p.m. and is open to the public. Those attending are encouraged to stay for the entire session and provide feedback to the selection committee through anonymous comment cards.
The applicant pool was narrowed to four final candidates using an application screening process by members of the West Park staff and district administration. The final candidates are Brad Bixler of Pendleton, Michael Roberts of Prosser, Wash., Kevin Headings of Stanfield, and Deborah Crueger of Newberg.
The new principal will succeed Shane Pratt, who resigned for personal reasons in October after serving seven years in the position. Hermiston School District Assistant Superintendent Bryn Browning is serving as interim principal at West Park until Pratt’s successor is named.
Headings has served as principal of Stanfield Elementary School since 2005. In 2010, he began serving in the dual role of principal and superintendent. Prior to coming to Stanfield, Headings spent seven years as a fourth- and fifth-grade teacher in Lebanon. He has been in the education field since 1993.
Bixler, assistant principal at Pendleton High School since 2008, has been in education since 1988. Prior his role at the high school, Bixler spent seven years as a fifth-grade teacher in the Pendleton School District. His educational experience includes time spent as elementary school teacher, technology coordinator, and middle school/high school math and science teacher.
Roberts entered the field of education in 1999. Since 2007, he has served as assistant principal at Housel Middle School in Prosser, Wash. Prior to that, he was a middle school and high school teacher, primarily in the language arts and social studies disciplines.
Crueger’s educational career began in 1990. She currently serves as a principal on special assignment at Edwards and Mabel Rush Elementary Schools in Newberg. Prior to that, she served as principal at Dundee Elementary in Newberg for seven years. Her teaching experience primarily includes fourth and fifth grades and Title I experiences in the Salem and North Bend areas.
