Dear Briarcrest Families and Community,
It is with great excitement that I greet you as the incoming principal at Briarcrest Elementary School. I am honored to have been selected to work with such an amazing staff, and to continue the efforts of my predecessor, Bob Koontz. I was able to spend several days this spring at the school, and am so impressed by the welcoming spirit of the students and families that I have met thus far; I look forward to getting to know you all better throughout the year.
To tell you a little about myself, I have worked in the Shoreline School District for the past eleven years. I spent most of that time at Meridian Park Elementary School, where I primarily served as a fourth grade teacher. This past year, I worked as an intern principal with Laura Ploudré at Parkwood, and also spent time at Lake Forest Park and Kellogg. My wife (Tara) and I have been busy at home this spring with our newborn son, Simon. He has brought so much joy to us, along with some sleep deprivation and many, many diapers. We also have a dog named Buster, who likes to keep us on our toes.
It will be a very busy summer at Briarcrest. Our summer custodial team has been working hard the past two weeks, cleaning carpets, waxing floors, and renewing the building for our start in the fall. We have two major construction projects, which consist of replacing our portables with new modular classrooms, and installing several new pieces of playground equipment. The school is also receiving new directional signage for the interior of the building, to make it easier for our visitors to navigate from place to place.
The year holds much in store for our students. They will continue to learn and grow under the excellent guidance of our teaching staff, who will be preparing them for success in later schooling and in life. Our fifth and sixth graders will again benefit from Shoreline’s laptop program, in which each student will have a MacBook to use for their class work. And of course, all of the students will participate in the amazing Performing Arts program here at the school, and will perform for their families, friends, and community.
I hope you have a wonderful summer, with many opportunities to relax with family and friends!
All the best,
Jonathan Nessan
Principal – Briarcrest Elementary School
