FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 3, 2021
Chief Ivan Blunka School, Principal Robin Jones, named Alaska Association of Secondary School Principals Alaska Principal of the Year for 2021.
The Alaska Association of Secondary School Principals is proud to announce our Alaska Principal of the Year for 2021 is Robin Jones, principal of Chief Ivan Blunka School in New Stuyahok, Alaska.
Robin Jones was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska where she graduated from Grace Christian School. She received her Bachelor of Science from John Brown University in 2005. She then received her Master of Education in School Counseling in 2008 and her Educational Leadership Certificate in 2015, both from University of Alaska Anchorage. In 2020, Jones earned her Superintendent Endorsement from University of Alaska Southeast. She has been selected by her peers as the AASSP Region 7 Principal of the Year in 2017 and 2020.
Jones will tell you that she is the proud principal of Chief Ivan Blunka School, which she has led for 8 years. It is a K-12 school in New Stuyahok, Alaska, located near Dillingham and in the Southwest Region School District.
As an active member of the Alaska Association of Secondary School Principals and the Alaska Council of School Administrators for several years, Principal Jones is a strong advocate at the state and national level for public education, especially as it pertains to equity in rural Alaska. She is also a principal mentor and has been part of the Alaska School Leadership Academy (ASLA) since its inception.
Southwest Region School District Superintendent Steve Noonkesser said, "In thirty-two years in education in Alaska, I have known few school leaders like Robin. She is a dedicated school leader who has found innovative ways to overcome some of the most difficult challenges facing Alaskan schools. She has worked tirelessly to find ways to increase staff retention. Her work to decrease staff turnover has resulted in stability in her staff and retention rates nearly unheard of in rural Alaska. She has also fostered an environment rarely found in public schools today. She has involved community in the school and built trusting relationships with her peers, staff and the families in her community."
“I spend quality time with my staff, because I care about them and because I understand that anything you can do as a principal to invest in and strengthen your staff's support systems will positively impact their ability to meet the needs of their students in the classroom," shared Principal Robin Jones.
One of her students shared that he didn't think he would do as well at school if she hadn't encouraged him to get outdoors and learn through hunting, fishing, berry picking, and other activities. "I love sharing my hunting stories with her, because no matter what she is always excited for me and proud. She is not even too jealous when I get more birds than her,” shared 11th grader Gusty B.
Each year, the AASSP State Principal of the Year winners are submitted for consideration to be the NASSP National Principal of the Year. NASSP will announce three finalists in July. Jones will travel to Washington DC in September for the NASSP Principals Institute.
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For more information, please contact Dr. Lisa S. Parady, Executive Director
Alaska Association of Secondary School Principals/ACSA
(907) 586-9702.