New team in place to help Mill Creek Middle School

A new leadership team has arrived at Mill Creek to address the struggling middle school’s problems that culminated in a union grievance last year.

Assistant principals David Jones and Regina Hauptmann will join school improvement officer Brad Brown to provide key support roles for the school.

Hauptmann has worked as an administrator in Federal Way academies for the past nine years, largely focusing on ESL (English as a Second Language) and student literacy. She was pivotal in founding the Federal Way International Academy.

“Our ELL (English Language Learners) students in Federal Way did not graduate at the same rates as our general ed students and that’s when we figured out, ‘Well, what are we gonna do about that and how can we raise achievement for our ELL kids?'” Hauptmann said.

Hauptmann is hoping to impact students, specifically non-English and low-literacy students, at earlier ages.

“Here I get to see and work with kids earlier,” she said, “so they have more time to get from where they are to where they need to be at the high school level.”

Jones also comes from a background in high schools, specifically at two Tacoma schools

Hauptmann and Jones said they were unfamiliar with Mill Creek’s history. The school has been beset with student disciplinary problems.

“All I know is I run from Auburn to Kent a lot on the Interurban Trail, but I didn’t know much of anything about the school until I took the job really,” Hauptmann said.

“I was kind of the same,” Jones said. “I’ve been in the high school my whole career so I wanted to go to the middle school level because being in high school we’ve seen what high school looks like. … I’ve seen the kids at the end of their educational career and now I get to see them in the middle.

“When I first came and I saw the students, I just saw diversity,” Jones added. “I see a bunch of kids that are ready to learn, eager to learn and a community that cares about their kids. That was my first impression, and I’m excited to be here.”

“It has its own challenges,” Hauptmann said, “and its own rewards.”

Looking for solutions

Brown wants the community not to fixate on the image that the middle school has earned over the past several years and instead look to the solutions that his team is trying to work out in the building and the community.

The new assistant principals also have ideas about how to improve the community outside of their work on campus. Specifically, Hauptmann says she hopes to see more after-school programs at Mill Creek.

“What is a unique challenge down here in the valley is that there’s not a lot of things for kids to do after school,” Hauptmann said. “In terms of this area, the lack of after-school programs and places to go for kids in the area after school has a big impact. … In my old school, we had the Boys and Girls Club right there.”

Brown, as the school’s new improvement officer, is excited about the opportunity and looks forward to tackling some of Mill Creek’s problems head on. To Brown, what’s integrating is the cultural differences at the school and finding ways to bring parents and business owners into the school to provide positive role models.

He also wants to focus on teaching students and teachers how to handle social situations.

One such situation, Brown explained, is of a student living in poverty who is directed by a teacher to quiet down. While the teacher meant nothing by the comment, the student might feel disrespected.

“For kids of poverty, respect is all they have so they go into a defense mode,” Brown said.

The student then thinks that the teacher doesn’t like her, retaliates and is kicked out of class or suspended but doesn’t understand why she was suspended for standing up for herself, Brown said.

Brown is excited about bridging cultural, social and economic gaps at the school.

“I’m feeling great, I love it. I’ve worked in schools like Mill Creek my whole life. I’ve worked with schools and communities that are similar in terms of demographics and needs,” he said.

He also says it’s time for the district, teachers and parents to stop finger-pointing and start supporting Mill Creek and the surrounding area.

“When you talk about high-needs schools, it is a multi-tiered collaboration and support process,” Brown said. “It’s getting teachers, community and (administration) and district support all on the same page, and harnessing that around kids.

“For Mill Creek I’m excited about them bringing in the PASA (Parent Academy for Student Achievement) program, getting a dialogue for student performance.”