Board approves Bruns as new Jackson High School principal

The Jackson Board of Education approved the promotion of assistant high school principal Roseann Bruns to the high school principal post at its meeting Tuesday night, March 14.

Bruns will replace outgoing principal Seth Harrell, who announced recently he accepted the high school principal position in the Kirkwood School District in St. Louis County. Harrell had been Jackson's high school principal for seven years.

Bruns has 23 years of experience in education, including 18 in the Jackson School District. In addition to serving as assistant high school principal for the last four years, Bruns was a math teacher at Jackson's junior high school for 14 years. Before that, she spent five years teaching in the Perryville School District. She also served as the curriculum facilitator of mathematics for grades six through nine, and won the Jackson Teacher of the Year award in 2012.

Bruns said her children went through the Jackson school system, and she's proud to be part of the culture.

"It's an extremely high honor," Bruns said. "It's a very big building and we have a lot of high standards and pride, and I want to make sure we honor that. I know we have some big shoes to fill."

In her role as assistant principal, Bruns she has helped in the areas of student attendance and discipline; teacher supervision and evaluation; professional development, and other school activities and events.

She said she hopes to continue the high communication standards set by Harrell, but also looks forward to helping teachers with her nearly two decades of classroom experience. That includes student instruction as well as meeting state administrative requirements.

"Mrs. Bruns is a strong academic leader, which will be an asset to the students, teachers and staff members of Jackson High School," superintendent Scott Smith said. "She is also known for taking initiative in any situation that may arise. We know that these qualities will help continue to move Jackson High School forward."

Bruns said two of the biggest challenges facing the high school are classroom space and safety — both areas she hopes will be addressed with the passage of two tax propositions Tuesday, April 4. The high school has seen significant growth in recent years, leading to overcrowded hallways and not enough classrooms to accommodate certain classes. In some cases, teachers have to move to different rooms to teach, using other teachers' spaces during their prep periods.

Bruns said the district will fill her position and another assistant principal position soon. She said assistant principal Brad Berry has accepted a different position out of state.