When Elizabeth Middle School students return to school this fall after summer, they will be welcomed by a new principal. Students already know their current principal is leaving the school, and now know that their new principal will be coming from just across the street at Kindersley Composite School.

Current KCS Vice-Principal Meaghan Friedrick will be the one assuming the role, and the Sun West School Division is happy to offer the position to somebody that is experienced in the division.

“We are very excited to have someone of Meaghan’s caliber take on this position,” stated Randy Emmerson, Sun West Director of Education in a release, “she has demonstrated outstanding leadership ability at KCS and has solid credentials in key areas including cognitive coaching, risk assessment and trauma, mental wellness and Indigenous perspectives.”

Friedrick did ponder the job opportunity for some time before accepting. She knows she has been at KCS for a little while now, and it was interesting to her that she would be able to try something new.

“I can hopefully bring some experience from the high school to the middle school and just try to engage the kids at a younger level before getting here (KCS),” said Friedrick. “It gives me a different perspective. I have been a Vice-Principal now for almost a decade so I thought I would try my hand at being a principal as well.”

Friedrick touched on how the middle school idea is still new to the community, and she is very excited to keep building what the admin team at Elizabeth has worked to establish these past few years. Westberry is the older of the two schools, sitting on Kindersley’s west side

Thanks to her background at the high school, she hopes to potentially introduce some fun and engaging crossover activities that could help a students school-transition process even more. Then again a middle school environment is one that Friedrick has never been in, and she is very open to learning more about it.

“I like the idea of the middle years being together and seeing what I can learn from that, and then apply what we have learned at the high school so far about building culture, climate,” said Friedrick describing her ideal school environment, “bringing some of that to the middle school, we will see how that works. I just love making relationships and connections and engaging people at any age. It doesn’t really matter as long as we can keep them interested and learning and getting themselves to where they want to be, that’s really important. And all that work just leads to a better community so that’s what I am looking forward to for sure.”

Friedrick did not start teaching in Kindersley until after she had worked positions in both Saskatoon and her hometown of Regina, but even in her limited time here she knows the history of the towns rivalry between former elementary schools – that she will likely now be responsible for putting to rest for good. The establishment of Elizabeth Middle School a few years back officially meant that Kindersley’s kids would finally co-exist, and no longer create the fun, arbitrary Westberry/Elizabeth rivalry that existed ever since Elizabeth’s introduction.

Friedrick was set to be apart of the Westberry/Elizabeth story before she ended up moving to Regina as a child. Now being interviewed by a product of the rivalry, it was pointed out to Friedrick that as principal, she should be ushering the first ever fully mixed Westberry/Elizabeth crop of talent down the street to the high school.

“That’s actually true I never thought of it that way. That is kind of an interesting way to think about it.”

By the time the journey across Kindersley’s school system becomes established, enough time will have passed where people like Friedrick’s daughter are right and the elementary rivalry is ancient history.

“She is 9 and so she thinks I’m crazy,” laughed Friedrick, “She asked ‘well how do you pick?’ and I said ‘well now you don’t have to’. It is an interesting idea I think.”

Friedrick is excited for the new position though she obviously knows how much she will miss KCS, evidenced as she racked her brain to gather her best memories. Anyone that had Friedrick throughout her time teaching likely enjoyed her style, though she herself likes to be known as a school support extraordinaire when it comes to certain types of students.

“I was very-very interested and invested in working with kids who absolutely hated school,” said Friedrick.

A tough task for some, but one that Friedrick thrived off. She liked the idea of helping someone who has had very negative experiences with school, and do what she can to help construct some positives for those same students to build confidence and foster an attitude that will eventually prove to themselves they could do it. Friedrick has helped out numerous students in these circumstances, and she says that often times it is something that lead to a life-long connection. She understands how tough things can be, but also knows how little it can take to turn a person around.

“The truth of the matter is that they don’t believe in themselves, so it’s finding ways to get kids to build their confidence and believe in themselves.”

This attitude towards her students is likely what pushed Friedrick into an admin role, and allowed her to help out as many students in the high school as she could. One example comes from a recent KCS graduate with intentions of becoming a lawyer. She remembers acting on a recommendation from Friedrick to take one of her classes that she promised would help. That student took the class and never forgot the advice, and has since received two law school acceptance letters.

The relationships she built, and would have continued to build are what Friedrick is going to miss most about KCS. She is literally only moving down the street, but her new role, in a new environment, with new and younger children is sure to provide some differences along the way. Friedrick didn’t think she would stay this long in Kindersley as she is someone who looks forward to change. She absolutely fell in love with KCS and all the experiences that came with it, and her favorite aspect of it is something that might be tough to replicate out of the middle school.

Witnessing kids growing up and keeping an eye on their adult life is something that might be a bit tougher out of middle school, but Friedrick is ready to take it one day, and one learned name at a time.

“I think it’s really important when you walk up and down the halls to remember as many kids names as you possibly can.”

Friedrick should make the extra effort early on this upcoming fall to get out on the playground and frequent the halls as much as possible, creating a friendly face for her new students to remember.

She is planning on putting just as much effort into getting to know her new teaching staff as she is planning with the kids, as it is all of the staffs responsibility to finally normalize the new middle school in town and prepare their students for the move into high school.