‘I look at it as an honor to serve here,’ principal tells Lucerne Valley parents
By Peter Day
A group of parents learned about the many activities and programs at Lucerne Valley Middle High School from Principal Nate Lambdin while enjoying freshly made breakfast burritos, pastries and hot coffee last Tuesday morning.
The casual “Breakfast With The Principal” event provided an opportunity for Lambdin to ensure that parents are aware of all the school has to offer their students and also provide them a chance to ask questions and share any concerns. For those guests who arrived early, Lambdin took them on a brief tour, showing the bare-dirt quad area, which is earmarked for a rock landscape. “Our kids deserve to see a beautiful area,” he said. “This is one of our down-the-line projects.” Under the direction of Athletic Director Brandon Barkley, the school has reinstated the middle school athletic program. The young athletes will learn the basics while building a base that will help grow the high school sports program, Lambdin added.
“I look at it as as an honor to serve here,” said Lambdin, a longtime area educator who most recently served as principal at Mojave High School in Hesperia. “ The staff here is probably the best I’ve ever worked with.”
When parents were seated in the school cafeteria, Mr. Lambdin introduced Kim Evans, who teaches the school’s culinary arts program, as she and a student delivered the student-made breakfast burritos and pastries for guests. The program and others offered through the California Technical Education program (formerly Regional Occupational Program, or R.O.P.) provide opportunities for students to pursue non-academic interests. Other CTE classes include automotive repair, autoCAD, business and more.
Lambdin also introduced school counselor Rebecca Rubio, who discussed the school’s partnership with Victor Valley College. The counseling department is busy registering Lucerne Valley seniors who will receive priority registration at the college for their first year. Financial aid also is available, she said.
The principal said that the school has applied for a $70,000 grant to provide Chromebook laptop computers for every Lucerne Valley High School student. Lambdin also would like to see each student with a Wi-Fi connection at home to enable the comprehensive educational use of the computer. The Chromebooks will open the door for addition subject learning, including French, German and other foreign language studies.
On December 10, Hip-Hop educator Blake Brandes is coming to Lucerne Valley schools. He will be presenting assemblies at Lucerne Valley Elementary School in the morning and Lucerne Valley Middle High School in the afternoon. In February, the high school is planning on starting a “Walk of Fame” to honor its 4.0 graduates. Similar to the “Hollywood Walk of Fame,” Lucerne Valley’s will include an icon such as a star and the name and year of the honoree.
“We’re getting kids involved in a lot of things,” Lambdin said.
Following the principal’s presentation, Lambdin and Assistant Principal Kelly Boeing addressed a topic brought up by a parent — bullying.
Lambdin said that bullying is not only a concern locally but throughout the U.S., and Lucerne Valley Middle High School is doing everything it can to deal with the issue. A recent survey of Lucerne Valley Middle High School showed that the vast majority — 80 percent — feel safe going to an adult on campus to discuss personal issues such as bullying. Already this year, the school has helped resolve many student issues.
“We’re not looking the other way,” Lambdin said. “If anything doesn’t feel right, let us know.”
“We’re looking at the whole child, not just the academic student,” Boeing added.
Lambdin affirmed the district’s commitment to the children of Lucerne Valley. “We’re super excited about connecting with you folks,” Lambdin said. “We have to listen to our kids. We have to listen to our community. We really care out our kids”
Following his presentation, Lambdin handed out a gift card donated by the Lucerne Valley Market & Hardware Store, and each attendee received a certificate to get their entire family into one school sporting event for free.
“Breakfast With The Principal” is held occasionally at both the middle high school and the elementary school. Future events will be announced before they occur.
Peter Day is a social media advisor for the Lucerne Valley Unified School District.
PHOTO: Lucerne Valley Middle High School Principal greets parents during the recent "Breakfast With The Principal" event at the school. Photo by Peter Day