Tom Gresham, 38, never wanted to be a teacher, let alone a principal. It was the farthest thing from his mind. As a student, he jumped from major to major studying subjects such as outdoor recreation, business, computer science, spanish, and geology. It was the suggestion from his wife to volunteer at an after school program at Alderwood Elementary School that made him realize how much he enjoyed education.
“I was with the student, and he said he was going to miss me,” said Gresham. “And the fact that there was this relationship there that he valued and I valued, that is when I decided, ‘that matters,’ so that’s why I decided to go into education. I wanted to do something that mattered in other people’s lives.”
Now in his first year as Roosevelt Elementary’s principal, Gresham, originally from Cheney, Wash., is leading the school with experience from his previous role as principal at Columbia Elementary and a plan to keep the school progressing in arts education.
“I love this school,” said Gresham. “Just because it has some diversity across the school, and we have an amazing staff. A staff that is so dedicated that works well with each other, and has a real strong collective ownership of all the students. I inherited this great gift, that I get to take over in a sense and try to see if we can get even better.”
Gresham began his work in education at Parkview Elementary while working on his masters degree in educational administration. He worked his way up from a teacher in Bellingham, to an assistant principal in Spokane and finally to a principal at Columbia Elementary where he spent the last two years. He wasn’t planning on leaving his job at Columbia because of the short amount of time he had been there, said Gresham.
“I remember when he said that he was going to be leaving I remember thinking, ‘I wouldn’t want to be the person to follow him’ because he is just a great leader and a great man, and people just loved him,” said Gresham.
Gresham said his main challenge as the new principal was adjusting to how the school worked and getting to know the staff, students and parents. Like any new job, it was just a matter of learning the ropes.
Season Coppinger, the second grade teacher at Roosevelt, has been working there for 13 years, and welcomes the new addition to the staff.
“It has been a very smooth transition,” said Coppinger. “We are very happy with this choice because there are so many similarities between our previous principal and our new principal. Both are easy-going, funny, and have a calming manner.”
Alabama Hill neighborhood resident Brittany Marquis, whose son attends Roosevelt, said the change in leadership has not affected the school. It is still a mix of “high standards” and an “easy-going” atmosphere.
“I have personally met him and he seems like an outstanding man,” said Marquis. “He’s always with a smile and cheerful greeting. He asks how you’re doing and likes to personally get to know everyone. I think he is a wonderful addition to the school.”
Just in the first five months at Roosevelt, Gresham already has plans to continue the focus on visual arts, music, drama and possibly a new emphasis on the integration of dance into physical education. Gresham also wants to improve teaching techniques by employing “instructional rounds” similar to what doctors use to watch each other practice medicine. Teachers each have their own individual techniques and by sitting in on classes and discussing the different styles of teaching, they can improve their styles of teaching, said Gresham.
Another current project is Playworks, a philosophy and structured program for recess. The main idea of Playworks is inclusiveness and provides support for children on the playground. It designates specific areas of the playground for different activities and includes new games for the children to learn and be involved in together.
As a father of two 9-year-old twins and a 6-year-old, Gresham keeps busy but enjoys working with the students.
“The best part of my job is going into classrooms and getting to see what kids are working on, what kids are learning and getting to watch them have that moment where it clicks and you can see that light bulb come on,” said Gresham. “A lot of times when I come into a classroom, kids will want to show me different things they’re working on, and I love seeing that sense of ‘I can do this,’ that sense of achievement, that they feel empowered and they know ‘I can do this’."
