Margin Notes: New Principal in Town

Minutes after the first day of school let out at Canton High School, the fire alarm went off, capping off an already tumultuous start to the school year. Technically, this was the third “first day of school” — the first day happened when all students logged on remotely, and then again when ninth graders arrived in-person to a school where masks are required, halls are one way, and cafeteria tables are spaced out six feet apart.

David Turcotte

On this first day, all of the grades — at least those in the same alphabetical section — were back in person. This was the first time David Turcotte, the high school’s new principal, had seen what was now his school in session. Throughout the summer he had walked the empty hallways, getting used to the space, but now, as Turcotte put it, “adolescent energy was entering school for the first time.” The stakes were very real. The fire alarm incident — provoked by a burned-out blower motor and soon responded to by the Fire Department — paled in comparison to the crisis Turcotte has had to handle running a school in the middle of a pandemic.

When we spoke by phone recently, Turcotte didn’t let the stress of his job show. He was sitting in his office, which is decorated with vinyl jazz records. “It’s really important for educators to be self-aware and know our own emotions as we attempt to get involved in emotional situations,” he said.

Turcotte has practiced this leadership style since his first job in education, where he taught math at a therapeutic school. The work was difficult, and the world was unstable — 9/11 happened during his first week on the job. “I remember saying to myself, ‘Wow, am I up to this task?’” Turcotte said. But guided by the teachers around him, Turcotte learned to navigate instability, regulating difficult emotions the same way he taught his students to do.

So when the Canton High School principal opening suddenly became more complicated given the pandemic, Turcotte, previously the dean of students at Newton North High School, didn’t shy away, diving into interviews for the job over Zoom. “I think in some ways now that I’m in it, it’s even more difficult than I realized,” Turcotte said. When he began in July, the town was deep in discussions about reopening plans, conversations that still remain divided. “It’s tough to honor all the different competing points of views and not have the luxury of being able to go back and look at past experience,” Turcotte said.

It’s even more difficult, Turcotte acknowledged, when you haven’t already established the community’s trust. Turcotte, who grew up in New Hampshire and now lives in Dorchester, is not only the new kid in Canton — he’s the new kid in charge of making decisions during the most stressful school year. “I know how important a school is to a community and that is only heightened in the environment we’re living in now,” Turcotte said at one point. “So even though I’m an unfamiliar face and I didn’t really have a connection to this community until I took the job, I feel a tremendous amount of responsibility.”

A few fun facts could help Turcotte become a little more familiar — he loves skiing, hiking, and making homemade pizza. For a while, he thought about going to cooking school. But more important than any of his interests is his dedication to building community — even if remotely. In one Zoom meeting with the faculty, Turcotte brought everyone together with a game — “if x is true, touch your head, if not true, touch your shoulders” — trying to get everyone to laugh and ease the strangeness. “As faculty or as students, our first task is to build a sense of community during this time when people are feeling really isolated,” Turcotte said.

As this school year continues unpredictably, Turcotte knows he’ll have to not only build these relationships, but also model the approach he hopes others can bring to this difficult year as well. Turcotte describes one of his own favorite teachers, Mr. Schubert, who taught ceramics, as the “kindest, gentlest guy in the world.” One time, Turcotte remembers, one student was horsing around and ended up breaking another student’s pot by accident. Mr. Schubert looked at the shattered art, and Turcotte was certain his teacher was going to finally lose his cool. Instead, Mr. Schubert simply said, “That’s a real bummer, man.”

“Kids felt comfortable and safe in his classroom,” Turcotte said of Mr. Schubert. Because of his teacher, Turcotte was inspired to spend extra time in the art studio after class, though having never considered himself an artsy kid. “Mr. Schubert really illustrates to me what an exceptional educator could be,” Turcotte said. “You always treat people with dignity and kindness, no matter how you may be feeling.”

Rachael Allen is a longtime Canton resident. She currently works as a production assistant for Slate magazine in New York.

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Posted by Rachael Allen on Oct 16 2020. Filed under Featured Content, Opinion. Both comments and pings are currently closed.