In celebration of Assistant Principal Appreciation Week, we sit down with our reigning AP of the year, Amy Neuenfeldt. Discover what a day in the life of an Assistant Principal is really like!
On this first week of April, we appreciate our AP's including our AP of the year. This is focused on Flagler Schools and I'm Jason Wheeler Community Information Specialist with Flagler Schools. We want to share the achievements and challenges facing our students, teachers and staff right here in Flagler County, Florida. So let's dive right in. We are sitting in Amy Neuenfeldt's office, she is the assistant principal at Indian Trails Middle School and happens to be our Assistant Principal of the Year. Yea you. Thanks for joining us for this conversation. First off. Second, share your story. How did you get here? How do we wind up having you here at Indian Trails? It's been a bit of a journey for you?
Amy Neuenfeldt:Absolutely. Well, I think it kind of started with my mom teaching. So I kind of grew up with a teacher, and that I decided to go to Flagler College and I was a deaf ed major. And it was with the boom and Stuart Maxie was the first to hire me at Wadsworth elementary school, or I spent 13 years in the classroom as a coach as TSC, which is our teachers support colleague. And then I was looking to kind of grow myself and Mr. Peacock picked me up as a TESE here. And then it just kind of led to being an administrator.
Jason Wheeler:Awesome. What is a day in the life of an assistant principal like?
Amy Neuenfeldt:It is never the same. It is different every single day. I think one of our big focuses here is specifically on the students. So every moment of the day is focused on, you know, helping them with their academics helping them and the hallways just being out and about working with our teachers to ensure all our students got needs are met. So No day is the same. It's always interesting, which is one of the things that I love. But the best part is always getting to work with the students work with the teachers, and seeing them light up and be successful.
Jason Wheeler:This is..when...this is gonna actually...we're recording this on a Friday, it's gonna actually air on a Thursday, and it's going to be in the middle of Assistant Principal Appreciation Week. So we appreciate you first off. What is one thing about your job that you don't think people may understand. And I know you guys do a lot of different things, but something that that people might not get.
Amy Neuenfeldt:So the day to day running of a school, when you think about being in the hallways being with the teachers being with the students. That's a part that they they see. What they don't always see is the behind how to organize the school how to organize testing, or how to curriculum, writing curriculum, writing assessments and the things that go into ensuring that each day runs smoothly. So I think that some things that people don't necessarily always get to see. Is that part of the job the things that go on behind the scenes that make it work.
Jason Wheeler:It is not a nine to five.
Amy Neuenfeldt:No, it is not. I was actually I interned here when it was K-8.
Jason Wheeler:Maybe nine in the morning to five in the afternoon the next day. Yes. So it congratulate I mean, kudos to So I remember the big lunches. And I remember, you know, every you and for pulling it off every single day. And as you said every day is different. You never know. You may have a plan. there's a kid, I think in every little corner of the school. So And then there's always that one thing that blows the plan up. It's usually probably in the worst opportune time at all, at all times. Challenges ahead for for yourself, for the middle school. I know, try the one everything's look everybody's looking at is the transferring of our sixth graders back to middle school. This is a rather large facility, it was originally a K-8. So it's kind of been half, not half empty, but half on used. This place is going to come alive next year. kind of envisioning that Mr. Cronk was here as well when they were all here. So kind of, in our minds kind of going back to what does that look like? And how can we successfully bring everybody on? So working with all the directors to ensure transportation, car writers, I know that Mr. Peacock and his team were on making sure we're gonna be able to house that many cars additionally, and where are they going to go. And custodial has been great. And plant services is bringing tables on. And so we are so excited to have the kids back curriculums working with us to bring over the teachers in the curriculum. And it's it's eye opening, but it's also invigorating to have something new, to have something excited. We got to do our zoom calls with our parents. And then April 19, we're going to have them on campus. So it's fun. It's exciting. So it's refreshing to have something that we look forward to. We're welcoming of the change. And the kids seem to be extremely excited as well. Like we're getting emails and they're kind of wanting their swag. You know, the things that are getting ready for middle school. But yeah, we're very excited and I think the challenge is being met by all parties to really ensure that it's a success. And so we're excited. But I think people don't understand is that okay? Yeah, we're moving sixth grade to middle school. But that means you're getting two new classes, because the sixth graders who are already next door and say, belterra, they're coming over it, they were gonna come anyway, as seventh graders, but those fifth graders not so you're getting to full, like, two thirds of your school could be brand new.
Amy Neuenfeldt:I like looking at our board you're seeing in here, it's about 925 kids be brand new to our school with the 460 that we currently have.
Jason Wheeler:How important is to get this year seven graders, the rising eighth graders involved in this because they're going to be your leaders. They're the ones who these new kids will be looking to I guess.
Amy Neuenfeldt:So our National Honor Society, Mrs. Blumengarten has started getting groups of kids together so that they can come in. One of the things that we did a few years ago is we had some of them come in and they had colored shirts on. And so they would just stand in the hallway. So a kid could give the schedule and they would direct the traffic awesome, because you know, there's only a few adults compared all the kids. So that was pretty cool. So just things that we've done traditionally just having to do on a larger scale, when the kids come in day one, the biggest thing is we make sure they have a map. And they make sure they know where the first classes and every period we stop, we all work together for the next transition is over the loudspeaker. It's it's a community event.
Jason Wheeler:Do you miss working in the classroom? Do you miss that relationship building on that small level? I imagine you try to make relationships with everybody. But that's, that's gonna be tough. But do you miss that, that smaller venue,
Amy Neuenfeldt:There are times that I do miss just kind of being in the classroom. I think by getting to go in the classroom as much as I do, and all the different ones, I get to build those relationships. But you know, you do you like the, you'll go in and see the science lab, and you're like, oh, I want to do this. The other day, they were creating things with playdough and math so that they could do angle measurements and things like that. And I was like, Oh, that's so much fun and exciting. And just seeing like the discussions being part of the discussions that the kids are doing. And those are the things that I'm like, Oh, really want to sit there. But when I step back sometimes, and I look and I get excited about the influence that I can have on the teachers, and that the people that I can connect within the school and the spread of the good things that teachers do, and that scholars do within the classroom, that's my joy is being able to make all this connections and advocating for them.
Jason Wheeler:Like I saw a really cool thing in this classroom. Maybe you want to try this classroom and kind of make those those connection A to B kind of thing. Yeah, that's awesome.
Amy Neuenfeldt:They're the experts.
Jason Wheeler:You're just the facilitator. Yes, I guess any principal worth their salt will say that they are successful because of their assistant principals. So in your position, who do you lean on? Who do you rely on to to be successful on what you do every day here?
Amy Neuenfeldt:Everybody, I honestly, at the end of the day, it's everybody, I have a phenomenal office staff that are willing to chip in for all the organization, if I have to organize tickets for testing or print things, they are ready to jump in. And they help to make my job easy, because they help take some of that weight off that paperwork side. The teachers, they are absolutely phenomenal. And anytime I can tap into a teacher leader, or I see something great, and they make my job easy, because once you see it in them, they'll share it and you're like, oh, job done, thank you very much. It's definitely a team from everybody from admin, you know, working well together, each of us taking our roles and responsibilities. But at the end of the day, collaborating together every single day, is what makes I think our jobs successful and easy. There's not just one person, it takes a village, and we definitely have it here.
Jason Wheeler:I will take it back to the fall when the prize patrol came here to Indian Trails and surprised you with the AP of the Year for the district. What was going through your mind and and you know, leading up to that moment and then post and now we're, you know, several months after the fact. What does this mean to you?
Amy Neuenfeldt:Wow, so that day was very exciting and very shocking. I I don't like to be the center of attention. This has made me a little nervous. I don't like to be the center of attention. I feel like I am great because of the people that are around me. You know if I can just facilitate their successes. So hopefully, you know just this whole year that it's not just about specifically what I do for Indian trials, but like how we all work together. I think the honor goes to everybody within that that we were acknowledged as a team
Jason Wheeler:When all You and your fellow APs get together and y'all meet like once a month, officially. And I'm sure you guys talk many times throughout the month, while y'all talk about what's what's the pulse of the APs, here in Flagler Schools.
Amy Neuenfeldt:First is, I think family. One of the things that a lot of the APs were teachers support colleagues together, or they were Dean's together prior, and you build that camaraderie, build that friendship. So the start is fun. It's laughter. It's exciting. But one of the best things because we kind of a lot of us have come together and have grown up in Flagler County as educators is just that communication, calling, you know, buddy, tailor, and we're like, hey, let's do this together and being able to work together as a community. And not just so much as like a school or an isolation in the classroom, but really building those bridges. So it's fun. We like to joke around.
Jason Wheeler:Breaking news and in trails and Buddy Taylor get along. It's it's it's Yeah, it does happen. Not every AP wants to be a principal. I think you do your time as an AP, how's this preparing you for when that call comes? And you know, you never know when that call is going to come? So how prepared are you ready to hit the ground running? If that phone does rain?
Amy Neuenfeldt:I don't think you're ever completely prepared. And education. Every day is excitement every day is something and you never know what something is going to be for that day. But I think preparing by working together was such a great team from just the academic side, which is kind of my background to working with Mr. Crocker, Mr. Andrews on facilities and what is entailed with that, and, you know, his student discipline and what does entail with that, I think by working as an AP, you get to see the whole school and multiple components, which leads to being a principal, and being able to see all of it because it's not just one roll. There's a lot of a lot of hats in the school.
Jason Wheeler:I know every time I talk to a principal, they always say that their their moment of fear is when everybody's looking at you one of the answer and you turn around and see if there's anybody with the answer, and they're looking at you, you have to have the answer. Yeah. And we're either right or wrong. But you're that's where the buck stops. And that's sometimes a tough pill to swallow sometimes.
Amy Neuenfeldt:It can be I think, though, having a supportive team. You know, sometimes you do have to make decisions in that instant in that moment. And you have to think on your feet, but a lot of times you can rely on feedback from others to be able to make a solid decision. So it's not just one person, right?
Jason Wheeler:When you're walking the halls and doing rounds around this, this massive campus. What are the moments that you take home and say, it was a good day?
Amy Neuenfeldt:I love the moments when the kids tell you something. Like, they're excited. Look, mister, come look at what we're doing. Check this out. This is my grade, you're in the hallways. And they're like, hey, you know, I just met one of my she calls herself my bestie. And she was so excited to share some good news. And it's just those moments that you take away that bill for the next day. The little things in life, for sure.
Jason Wheeler:We're gonna wrap this up. But I always asked the same two questions. Everybody who sits behind that microphone. First question is, is what makes you sad?
Amy Neuenfeldt:What makes me sad? Yeah. Wow. You know, in life, we all feel sad at moments. But I always try to see the positive in a situation. And then take that little bit of hope, that little bit of positivity and build on it. So when I see a kid hurting, we understand why they're hurting, but I want to see a positive that I can then use and change and help make them positive. I can see a kid struggling academically and they're failing and they feel like they're in a hole. And we just start with one piece one thing and they feel that success. So where I feel sad, when kids don't feel successful, it is an opportunity to build on that hope. And that little piece and then they're coming to you at promotion ceremony high fiving you because they passed and they're excited or they've worked their differences with their friends or, you know, something exciting happen, or they were good at sports. So they had that moment that just made them shine for a moment.
Jason Wheeler:So what makes you happy? That'd be it?
Amy Neuenfeldt:Yeah, yeah, definitely seeing other people happy and other people feel successful and knowing that at the end of the day, it's up to the person to do that. But if you had a little hand in it, you can it just makes you happy. Like you knew that you started them on that right track and then that's where they went.
Jason Wheeler:Amy Neuenfeldt, associate...assistant principal at IndianTrails Middle School, our Assistant Principal of the Year for Flagler Schools. Thank you so much for the conversation. And we appreciate you not only this week during AP Appreciation Week, but we appreciate all y'all every day...every week. You guys do great jobs as APs, really keep these schools going and watching out for those principals.
Amy Neuenfeldt:Thank you for having me.
Jason Wheeler:And we want to thank you for listening to Focused on Flagler Schools, a production of the Flagler County School District, new episodes are released every Thursday. If you like what you hear, subscribe, and check out Flagler Schools at WWW dot Flagler schools.com. Or on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram where they're at Flagler Schools. Thanks for listening and remember, let's keep focused on Flagler Schools.