Last week, I had the opportunity to interview Bellingham High’s new principal, Ben Goodwin. We talked about his background in education and his thoughts about the BHS community and where we can grow.
Principal Goodwin grew up in Washington. He worked at BHS for 10 years as a teacher, before leaving to be an assistant principal at Ferndale High School. He wanted to become a principal, and when he heard Bellingham High was looking for a principal, he was excited to return.
What are you most excited about for the future at BHS?
He is hoping to provide additional structure to school expectations to make it easier to navigate BHS especially as a freshman. Prioritizing meeting students where they are on their learning journey and making sure all students are seen.
What do you believe is going to be the biggest challenge?
Lots of teachers are close to retirement and being able to maintain the culture of BHS with new teachers will be a challenge. Focusing on finding the good in education and aiming to be principal for a long time will be an ongoing goal.
What do you believe the impact of AI will be on teaching and learning in the coming years?
It will be very important to teach students ethical uses of AI, like a learning tool and not to do the schoolwork for you.
What is the most creative/cool thing you have seen at BHS in your time here?
In his 10 years at BHS as a teacher he helped make the We R BHS poster. The poster/mantra is a way of saying that anything can be the R, anything a student is involved in makes them part of the BHS community. It’s a way to say that everybody can find their ‘thing’ and they are all part of the community.
What community aspects of BHS do you think needs improvement?
Student involvement can improve by having more participation in dress up days and coming to student events like sports games, concerts, and plays. If more students show up to events, it makes the students performing or playing feel supported and fostering that connection is important.
What do you think BHS is doing well at as a student and teacher body?
Having a welcoming environment and so much kindness in the community is one of the best parts of BHS.
How have you felt you have positively impacted the BHS community?
The addition of The Nest as a place people can have a break and a place to focus.
Is there anything you want to add that we didn’t talk about?
The transition to a 7-period schedule will be tricky to navigate, but getting future feedback and input from the community will be appreciated.
Thank you to Principal Goodwin for taking the time to do this interview with me! It was super informative and a great experience.
