Benzing has tried on many Strath Haven roles, and he hopes to bring all of those to the table as the new principal.
On Monday, November 18, the school board recommended that Benzing assume the position of principal at Strath Haven High School effective January 2, 2025. Previously the Director of STEM Education K-12, he will replace interim principal Mrs. Andrea LaPira, effective on or about January 2, 2025.
“I couldn’t be more excited to have Mr. Benzing take on this new role at the high school,” Board Vice President Kelly Wachtman said at the November 18 board meeting.
According to Wachtman, Benzing’s enthusiasm for math and education in general can “light up a room.”
“I always wondered as you came into that, coming from the teaching side into that [administrative] role, how would that work,” Wachtman said, speaking to Benzing at the November 18 board meeting. “It’s a hard transition to make when you’re now leading your peers, and you’ve done a phenomenal job with that.”
According to his profile on the Office of Teaching, Learning, and Innovation webpage, Benzing has held the roles of “teacher, class advisor, coach, department chair and sponsored numerous clubs and activities.”
He hopes that a multifaceted background will help him in his new role.
“Now that I’m coming back to returning happily back to the building, all those perspectives are valuable and important at different times when you’re making a decision,” Benzing said.
Benzing describes the principal application process as initially a marathon but ending as a sprint, starting in August. He submitted materials like his resume and recommendations and went through many interviews with various school community members. He was chosen out of 24 people.
“My 60-day plan and what I wanted to enter as my first idea of free ice cream sandwiches for everyone didn’t end up in the final proposal, but working through the process was worth it. I’m really excited to be here. I can’t wait for the new year. It’s a new start. I’m just excited to get back in the building again,” Benzing said.
While considering becoming principal, Benzing realized the importance of daily student interactions.
“I think the longer I was in [an admin role], I realized that I really enjoyed the daily interactions with students, and that was something I missed,” Benzing said. “I still love instruction and curriculum, but a principal is a nice blend, and I could be with students every day.”
He is eager to become more active in the community and promote more principal-student connections.
“It’s one thing to run advisory councils and neighborhood councils where students come to the principal, but I think it’s more authentic when I go to what the students are doing, go to their activities, go to their events,” Benzing said.
One of his main goals, promoting student involvement, leans on his value in that established community.
“I’d like to think that we expand on this idea of access for all students, that there’s a place and an activity for everyone that they can really see value in, that it’s a very welcoming community, a very welcoming space for all academic levels, and that all students have a real opportunity to go as far as they possibly want,” Benzing said.
For Benzing, Strath Haven is his family. His passion and commitment are what will drive him in his new role.
“I think a true sense of identity and purpose for what Strath Haven is in moving forward, is to be really innovative, that we embrace the community aspect,” Benzing said. “I think that’s our greatest strength here, and that we expand on what that means so that everyone in our community is held up and valued. To me, that’s a primary focus.”
Benzing’s current stressor is transitioning away from the Director of STEM role and closing the projects he had previously been working on.
“I think we’ve done good work,” Benzing said. “I don’t think [the role]’s going anywhere, at least I hope it doesn’t. The position may change form but there has been a pile of work, with a lot of people excited about it, so hopefully it’ll stay.”
Benzing hopes to join in on reviewing the cell phone policy for one of his first goals.
“I think there’s a lot going on right now and for the rest of this year that I want to work with a current admin team who’s doing an amazing job to continue what [teachers] are working towards,” he said. “I want to monitor the current projects, see how that’s going, the effectiveness of that, how we can expand or improve on that.”*
