Trading Places Mead Middle School Eighth-Grader Wins A Drawing And The Chance To Be Principal For A Day

Bry Andrews arrived at Mead Middle School last Wednesday and knew right away that that day would be like no other.

Last week, Andrews got the chance to step outside her normal eighth-grade shoes in order to be the big cheese.

Andrews was the principal and principal Alison Olzendam assumed the role of student.

“The first thing I did in the morning was to ask her for a raise,” said counseling secretary Claudia Patterson. And she wasn’t the only one.

“Everybody asked for a raise,” Andrews said.

Olzendam was met with challenges as well.

“This is hard,” she said. “You forget how regimented school is. You can’t get up and go to the bathroom when you want. You can’t get up and take a break when you want.

“It’s more like the military,” she said.

Andrews got to flip-flop with Olzendam after winning a school-wide drawing last month which was part of a student-recognition program at the school.

It’s affiliated with the school’s renaissance program which encourages student achievement and community involvement.

Andrews was recognized for helping pick up trash around the 600-student school.

Olzendam, a first-year principal at Mead Middle School, is no stranger to the pupil ranks. Students got the chance to be principal for the day when she was at Chase Middle School in recent years.

“I think it’s important to single out kids for the good things they do,” Olzendam said. “It’s important for them to be recognized in a positive light as opposed to just being singled out if they get in trouble.”

And Olzendam said it’s also good for her to mingle with the student body as one of their peers from time to time.

“I love being among them; they’re hilarious,” she said.

So on this day, Andrews maintained lunchroom supervision with other teachers while Olzendam wolfed down two corn dogs, tater rounds and a pretzel for lunch.

“Gosh, I haven’t eaten a corn dog in 20 years,” Olzendam said, as she surveyed the $1.80 cuisine sitting before her.

“Typical kid’s plate; no green on it,” she said.

Despite the fact that Olzendam was supposed to be Andrews, there were still a few students that were a bit leery of their new classmate.

Like the two boys who moved to another lunch table when Olzendam sat down to eat with them.

After lunch, Olzendam went to Andrews’ language arts class and took a test.

“I better do well on this,” she said. “I used to teach English.”

Asked what it was like to be principal, Andrews said, “I haven’t been that busy.”

Obviously report cards haven’t gone out.