ANDERSON TOWNSHIP, OHIO — As schools celebrate the last day of school before summer break and prepare for graduation, one Forest Hills School District principal is creating a new senior tradition focused on making the school better.
Andy Jados is in his first year as principal at Turpin High School, and he asked every senior this school year, to sit down with him for an exit interview. It's something employers often do when someone is leaving a job.
“We want to really focus on making that school experience better for all students," Jados said.
Questions included what the students' plans are for after graduation and what class they wish was offered at Turpin High School.
"One of the questions is who is you — what staff member made the most positive impact on you? We don't focus as much on who, but the why. What did these staff members do that really affected our students in a positive way? So we're going to take all of the whys, clump them together and share that with our staff," Jados said.
JD McManus is one of the seniors who took part in the exit interviews. He's been a student in the district since elementary school and said he found a sense of belonging through theater. So when Jados asked how he would improve Turpin during the interview, his answer had that sense of belonging front and center.
“I think just like a problem with any high school is getting more students involved," he said.
This was one of the last exit interviews of the year for Jados, so he's heard it all — from cafeteria food suggestions to ways to improve parking.
“There definitely have been a few similar to JD’s, about how to get more students involved," he said. “I know we’re well over two thirds of our students are involved in at least some sport, but we want to make sure that we’re reaching all students.”
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He already has a solution in mind.
“We are going to put a group together with teachers and students to look at the student involvement piece," Jados said.
He said they'll be compiling the answers from all of the exit interview questions and sharing it will staff too, all in he hopes that when the students get to the end of their time at Turpin, it's been a good experience.
