5:45 a.m. Headmaster Deborah Holman’s day begins with a cup of coffee and a morning walk with her dog Meyer, a 5-year-old Shih Tzu. As she gets ready for another exciting day as headmaster, Holman listens to NPR.
7:45 a.m. Holman arrives at school and grabs her keys and walkie-talkie before heading out to the front of the building. She welcomes students as they pour into the school, often chatting with Assistant Headmaster Hal Mason as she does so. They smile and greet students by name while discussing the upcoming day.
9:16 a.m. In between morning meetings with various staff members, Holman traverses the school, greeting the deans, guidance counselors and administrators. She chats about the start of the school year, Arena Day, and other changes and issues that have recently occurred.
9:33 a.m. Holman stops by the library to greet the librarians. As vice principal at Newton North, Holman was the administrator in charge of the library. Holman is currently discussing future changes and ideas that she has for the library. These changes could include café seating along the back wall of the library and the creation of a more collaborative space for students to sit and talk. As she walks out of the library, Holman mentions her favorite student drawing that hangs on the library wall.
9:36 a.m. Returning to her office, Holman is greeted by the deans who have gathered for their weekly meeting. Laughter can be heard from behind the closed door of the office. Topics they discuss include school issues and sometimes specific students.
10:42 a.m. At the conclusion of the meeting, Holman walks with purpose in the direction of Cypress Field. Accompanied by the deans, she approaches the picnic tables on the left and right sides of the field. Along the way, she greets students and smiles at the soccer players scrimmaging on the field.
10:47 a.m. With help from deans and various students, Holman assists and directs the moving of the picnic tables to a spot closer to the school’s entrance. This discourages them from becoming an alternate hangout spot for students who smoke cigarettes. Afterwards, Holman thanks everyone for their help.
10:49 a.m. Holman steps in to kick a soccer ball after admiring the students who are playing. She used to play in a women’s league.
10:52 a.m. Holman stops by Mason’s office to say good morning and talk about the issues brought up in the meeting with deans. On the way, she stops to talk about hydrangeas with Mason’s assistant.
11:03 a.m. Holman arrives back at her office to find a few administrators waiting for her. They sit down to discuss new state legislature that will affect the school.
11:26 a.m. At the conclusion of X-block, Holman sits down with a group of students, the Headmaster Student Leadership Group, to discuss the opening of the school year. She addresses each of their concerns and problems. The group meets once a month and offers Holman the opportunity to stay in touch with the student body. Last year’s group focused on the use of technology in education. This year, the topic of conversation will be about opportunities for learning outside of school hours.
Meetings, meetings, meetings! The majority of Holman’s day is filled with meetings around the building, during which she makes decisions that affect the entire high school community.
Evenings Holman’s day does not end at 3 p.m. She often attends numerous afternoon and evening events, including parent nights, Athletic Night, PTO meetings, 21st Century Fund meetings, Performing Arts shows, sporting events and the October 21 Back-To-School Night.
Aria Wong can be contacted at [email protected]
