Principal gives young learners a head start

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers RECEIVING RECOGNITION—Dos Caminos Elementary School Principal RaeAnne Michael, second from right, celebrates with kindergarten teacher Judy Crenshaw, top, and her class at the school on Jan. 7. Michael will receive an award from the California Kindergarten Association at its annual conference Jan. 17 and 18 in Santa Clara, Calif. RaeAnne Michael remembers her first day as a third-grade teacher at Dos Caminos Elementary School in 1979.

She walked up to the door of classroom A5, took a deep breath and walked inside.

"Oh, gosh. How am I going to do this?" Michael thought.

Thirty years later, Michael is the principal of Dos Caminos Elementary and is being honored by the California Kindergarten Association for her work in education.

The longtime educator will receive the Judy Brown Administrator Recognition Award at the organization's 27th annual conference which will be held at the Santa Clara Convention Center on Jan. 17 and 18.

"I was very surprised to receive this award," Michael said. "I didn't even know they had this award when staff called me to make the announcement."

In her fourth year as principal at Dos Caminos, Michael was nominated by kindergarten teachers Judy Crenshaw, Aimee Stoll and Kathy Trembley.

"RaeAnne is an exemplary principal. She always has the kids at the forefront—it's always about the kids and what's best for kids," said Crenshaw, who's in her first year at Dos Caminos and 21st overall in the Pleasant Valley School District.

"The whole school feels like a large family where everyone cares and wants to bring out the best in every individual on campus," Crenshaw continued. "Of course, you have to have a leader."

For the past two years at Dos Caminos, kindergartners have attended school for five hours instead of three, which benefits English language learners and students from low-income households.

Michael was instrumental in bringing a preschool to the campus three years ago.

There were nine preschool students the first year of the program. This year there are 28 students in the program.

The principal would like to see the preschool grow.

She hopes when those students move into kindergarten, they will be prepared to read at a gradeschool level.

The principal was instrumental in partnering with California State University Channel Islands.

Last semester, 22 student teachers from CSUCI arrived before school started at Dos Caminos on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays for tutoring sessions. The student teachers help youngsters who struggle with reading comprehension. Tutoring will resume later this semester.

Michael felt she was unprepared for the classroom her first year and thinks this program helps everyone out.

"I really wasn't ready for the classroom 30 years ago. Everything was scary," Michael said. "Now we have a wonderful university in our community."

The principal hopes to integrate more technology into the kindergarten level by adding more computers into the classrooms and engaging students with interactive software. She would also like parents to get more involved in their children's education.

"It's been my good fortune to be part of such a wonderful learning community and make a difference for the kids in this community," Michael said. "Our facility looks gorgeous; we have programs in place, and we're going to help children who walk in that door and meet their needs."