This year at Edison we have two new Vice Principals, Mr. Braun, and Mr. Lewis. After meeting with them last week and asking them some questions I feel as though we are going to have one amazing year here at Edison!  

Mr. Braun 

At first, Mr. Braun seemed a little nervous about his interview, but after about three questions or so he seemed just fine. The first question I asked Braun was what made him consider working here at Edison, he went on to explain that he was placed here but was extremely excited about it. “Once I found out I was moved I called the principal and had a conversation with him…we had taught together…I was excited to come here because of him.” He went on to talk about his experience with being a water polo coach and how he decided to stop doing that and become an administrator, he previously worked at Hoover High School for six years–this is his seventh year being a vice principal. When asked how he was liking Edison he seemed very happy with the students and staff and their amiability. Originally, Mr. Braun was considering going into the Air Force Academy and it wasn’t until a former water polo coach had told him something, did he then decide to change his career path. Something that Mr. Brun would like all of the Edison Tigers to know that “I care about them and that I want them to excel in whatever they choose to do, and I want to be a part of helping them do those things.” He said that raising his two daughters is his biggest accomplishment and that his family means very much to him. His goals for this year are to work with teachers and build campus culture here at Edison and to try and build better student ownership. Braun says that having caring relationships and having students be more involved and engaged in school is what is most important to him in a school environment. For the last question that I had asked Mr. Braun, I gave him a second to think over his answer because it was a bit of a loaded question, I asked what the biggest obstacle he had to overcome was to get to where he is today. His response? He said he had none. He likes to change his perspective on things and make each “mistake” valuable learning experience and tries to take away something positive from the situation.   

I asked Mr. Lewis the same questions and it was interesting to compare each of their answers and see what they each bring to the table and their different takes on certain things. 

Mr. Lewis  

When asked the same first question–what made you consider working at Edison? Mr. Lewis says that he knew right off the bat that he wanted to work at a high school once he became an administrator and since he was a student here when he was in high school, he thought it would be cool to make that full circle. “I didn’t think I had a shot at Edison I really didn’t…” when he got the phone call from our Principal, Mr. Munoz, he was a little surprised and extremely excited because of the history the both of them have. Mr. Lewis jokes about when he was a student here, once he graduated, he would say “I’m not coming back to this place,” and now he works here, ironic isn’t it? A lot of former Gaston Middle Schoolers may recognize him because he used to teach English there for four years before he moved to Mclane for one year, and then he came here. Mr. Lewis loves the culture here at Edison and says he loves working here, alongside his supportive administrative team. Mr. Lewis says he wants to crack down on tardies and absences, he says that even if you’re only a couple of minutes late, you already miss a lot of instructions and can later harm your academic growth as a student. As a leader, Mr. Lewis describes himself as fair, but stern when he needs to be, he prides himself on his listening capabilities and hearing the student’s side, he also states that he is big on keeping promises “I won’t make promises I can’t keep, and if I can’t keep them I won’t make them.” He is a devoted Christian; therefore, he is always keeping his faith in mind when making any sort of decision. Lewis too was not planning on becoming an administrator when he first went to college, that decision came later when he started truly hearing his faith. At first, he majored in mathematics and chemistry, but after praying on it due to schedule conflicts, he decided to major in English and soon after that he started a church. While doing that he found his way to be a substitute teacher, both of his parents teach. His father is a pastor and his mother is a teacher. Once he got a permanent teaching job, he said the fit was perfect. Lewis says he feels like he was always meant to be an educator. When asked what he wanted the Edison Tigers to know about him he said  “I want them to know that I’m not against them, I want both the students and the staff to know that I am here for support…” he went on to say that if a student ever needs to talk about something that he is more than happy to listen and offer his support. He too feels like his family is his biggest accomplishment and he says he has God to thank for that. Mr. Lewis says that safety is what is most important to him in a school environment. The biggest obstacle that he had to overcome in the past was the feeling of always needing to do something for it to be done right. He needed to work on delegating and not feeling the need to do everything for everybody, as well as let go and let people do what they do best.  

After talking to both of our new Vice Principals, I decided to ask our principal how he was liking the new fit. 

Mr. Munoz  

Mr. Munoz says that so far, they’ve been doing an extremely good job and since he has a history with the both of them, it is easier to delegate certain things onto them and really trust them. Since it is a process and each vice principal has their own techniques as well as different skill sets, he thinks that the fit is well. Mr. Munoz goes on to explain how we can expect some new changes with the organization of the we-act lessons. He wants to start spending more time with students and learning about what we want to get out of school. Mr. Munoz says that he feels like he is more of a hands-on leader and he likes to let you lead, he won’t micromanage people. He believes in a little bit of struggle “If you want to be successful things are going to be challenging, because what’s the worth and gratification if you look back and say ‘that was super easy’ if it was hard or challenging you’re able to look back and say ‘ wow look at everything I’ve overcome’ you’ll feel better about your ability to persevere and power through.”  I then asked him the same million-dollar question–his biggest obstacle. Munoz said that the biggest obstacle he had to overcome was people. He had to push through everyone who said he could not and would not make it, he had to believe that education would change his life. All the male influences in his life chose several different paths and none of them seemed suitable to him, so once he realized that school was something that could change his life, he stuck to it. He had a counselor tell him that as long as he stayed in school and did well then he would be just fine, so he did and in his senior year, he got a scholarship for 2,000 dollars and decided to go to Fresno State–it covered his first two years of college.  

After meeting with them I think it is pretty safe to say that, we tigers, can be expecting some great changes, as well as fresh new outlooks. Here’s to the start of a great year Tigers!