|
New Principal "excited and honored" to be in Osage
by Warren Haacke, Press-News Reporter
Tim Hejhal, the new Osage High School Principal, sees the opportunity to serve the school and community as an honor.
"I was thrilled when the position here at Osage become open this spring and I feel very honored to be selected as the new high school principal," said Hejhal.
"I was also very impressed with the school's high academic achievements, the strong music and fine arts programs, the athletic programs and their achievements, as well as all the other activities and programs here," he stated.
Hejhal continued, "While researching, touring, and interviewing for this job, I was impressed by the community as a whole and of all the school accomplishments. I immediately felt right at home here and knew right away, this was where I wanted to be."
The Osage School Board unanimously approved Hejhal to replace Dr. Steven Nicholson as high school principal. Nicholson is moving on to the New Hampton School District as Superintendent of Schools.
Hejhal (pronounced hay-hall) will officially begin his new duties in Osage beginning August 1. Although he has spent some time at the school already. He and his family recently purchased a home in Osage are in the process of completing the moving transition.
Hejhal comes to Osage from MFL MarMac High School where he was the Dean of Students, as well as the Athletic Director.
Hejhal is the oldest child of Gene and Diana Hejhal from Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, a growing community located five miles south of Sioux City, Iowa.
"I was actually born in Schuyler, Nebraska but spent most of my young life growing up in western Iowa, around Sioux City," said Hejhal. "I have two younger sisters and one younger brother. Both my parents are retired educators. My father taught industrial technology and math for over 35 years in the Sioux City School district. My mother taught special education for over 20 years at Sergeant Bluff-Luton Schools."
Hejhal is a 1981 graduate of Sergeant Bluff-Luton High School in Sergeant Bluff, Iowa. While growing up there, he was very involved in school and community activities.
He was active in Boy Scouts, four years of football, five years of baseball, two years of track and four years of wrestling. He also played the alto saxophone and was a member of the school science club. After high school he attended Northwestern College in Orange City, IA. At Northwestern, Hejhal majored in both Business and Physical Education and wrestled on the Red Raider wrestling team. He was a 4-year wrestling letterman, two-year captain and two-time national qualifier.
"Besides my parents, there were two other individuals that had a tremendous influence on my life," Hejhal said. "Both are teachers and coaches at Sergeant Bluff. Rick Admire was my Business teacher and Head Baseball coach and is currently still teaching business and coaching baseball at SBL. He is closing in on his 500th win in baseball. Also, Al Borkowski was my Industrial Tech teacher, football and head wrestling coach while I was in high school and I believe he will be retiring at the end of this year from SBL. Both of these individuals were tremendous teachers, motivators, role models and leaders and had a major impact on me and my decision to go into education."
"I have been in education for the last 22 years of my life, Hejhal said. "My work experience includes teaching and coaching at both the high school and middle school levels. I have taught Business Education, Physical Education, and worked as an At-risk coordinator during my tenure as a teacher. Most of my teaching years have been in the Dubuque Community schools where I spent 17 years. I also spent 20 years coaching wrestling (9 years as Head coach of Dubuque Senior), 16 years coaching football and numerous years coaching youth softball, baseball and soccer."
In 2003, Hejhal received his Masters Degree in Educational Administration from the University of Northern Iowa. Most recently, he has worked at MFL-MarMac High School, where he was the Dean of Students, Athletic Director, Juvenile Court Liaison and Truancy Officer for the past 4 years.
Hejhal also currently serves his country in the Air National Guard in Sioux City, Iowa as the Logistics Readiness Squadron Commander. As the Logistics Readiness Commander, he oversees six sections and around 105 guardsmen. He has over 24 years experience at the 185th Air Refueling Wing in Sioux City and is currently a Lieutenant Colonel.
"It has always been one of my goals to be a high school principal," said Hejhal. "The main reason I chose education as a career was my passion and love for working with kids. I can think of no better job in the world today, than educating and shaping the minds of our most precious assets and the future leaders of this country - our children."
"Some of the positive things I've seen at Osage so far are: a safe, small town community; many dedicated, hard working, friendly people and a caring, committed staff and administration," he said. "I am very excited and honored to be here at Osage. I look forward to the challenge and opportunity to help make this school and community an even better ones."
Hejhal and his wife Donna have been married for 21 years and have three teenage children. Donna is a Special Education Consultant for AEA 1 and will be working out of the New Hampton office this year. She has a B.A. in Elementary Education from Clarke College and an M.A.in Special Education from Loras College. Donna has been an elementary and special education classroom teacher for over 15 years and is in her fourth year as a Special Education Consultant.
"Our oldest daughter Sara graduated from MFL-MarMac High School this year and will be attending UNI in the fall," said Hejhal. "She also joined the Sioux City, Iowa Air National Guard and completed her basic training and tech school this spring. Our two youngest children, Trevor and Danielle will be attending Osage High School this fall. Trevor is 16 and will be a junior, while Danielle is 14 and will be a freshman."
Hejhal has several hobbies, which include golfing, hiking, fishing, all kinds of sports, and reading. His family enjoys doing things together like traveling, camping, playing all kinds of card/board games, as well as table tennis.
"My family and I are very excited to be here in Osage," said Hejhal. "We're all looking forward to making new friends and settling into the community."
Story created Jul 22, 2008 - 10:55:52 CDT.
|
