A letter from our Principal
Dear Panther Families,
Welcome to the 2022-2023 school year! I am so excited to be working with the students, families, and staff at North Elementary once again. I hope that you were able to relax and enjoy time with families and friends. For those new to our district and school, welcome!
Before becoming a school administrator, I taught for 18 years. Seventeen of those years were at Chaparral Middle School. In 2017, I left my CMS home to begin my next journey-assistant principal at Alamogordo High School. I spent three years at AHS before moving to Stepping Stones PreK. It was quite the eye-opener, moving from secondary to preschool. I am grateful for these different opportunities to work with a variety of ages and levels. These experiences have allowed me to grow personally and professionally.
Students are the center of all school-related decisions. At the end of the 21-22 SY, my team and I sat down to reflect on the school year and the changes which we needed to make in order to help our students to be successful not only in their academics but also in their life. Therefore, our focus for the 2022-2023 SY is to build relationships and a family culture where students feel welcomed, accepted, and safe. I believe that educating students goes beyond a child’s intellect; it is about educating the whole child. We will work with students to develop healthy ways to express themselves emotionally, to be empowered to have a voice, and to excel to their highest academic potential.
I look forward to meeting our new kindergarten students on August 11th, and welcoming back all of our students on August 12th. I hope to see you on August 8th from 6:00-7:00 pm for our open house. This event will start off in the cafeteria before moving into the main building. Also, please stop by our new STEM lab! I am so excited for our students to have a lab where they have more room to engage in activities that explore topics that teach them about physical science, object movement, technology development and structure building!
On a last note, I spend much of the day interacting with students and staff; therefore, I have set office hours from 3:30-4:30 to meet if needed. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have questions or concerns.
Respectfully,
Debra Rottland
