GROVELAND — The new school year started yesterday with the hallways of Bagnall Elementary full of parents, students and teachers, as well as a new face to lead children through the next 180 academic days.
The day started with Bagnall's sixth annual first day of school celebration, where parents brought children to their classrooms.
"I don't think I saw any tears this morning, and that is pretty good for 700 kids coming to school for the first day," Bagnall Principal Elaine Champion said.
The opportunity for parents to walk their children to class helps ease the pressure and anxiety of the first day, Champion said.
Joanna Valhouli-Davis, mother of 7-year-old Bagnall student James Davis, said bringing her son to school was "very exciting" for both of them.
"We hate to see the summer go because it was a great summer, but they are excited to embark on this new adventure," Valhouli-Davis said. "It is exciting for me because I went to this school as well, so it brings back memories."
Parents and students also were greeted by a new face — recently hired Assistant Principal Kathleen Riordan.
Sitting in her office after parents left the school, Riordan said she thought the celebration was "fabulous."
"It is very different," she said. "It really builds on that sense of community. It helps parents to feel comfortable about bringing their children here on that first day, and it helps to eliminate the jitters."
"It starts the year on a positive note," she said.
After teaching third and fourth grades at the East Derry Memorial Elementary School in Derry for more than a decade and then serving as a principal intern there before this year, Riordan said Bagnall's "outstanding reputation" brought her to Groveland.
"It is a very inclusive community," she said. "The fact that this is the only elementary school (in town) speaks to the fact that the parents are very involved with the community, and I look forward to being a part of that."
Riordan became Bagnall's new assistant principal on Aug. 23, after a vacancy that generated 60 applications was narrowed down to six prospective educators, Champion said.
"It was a strong candidate pool," Champion said. "Kathleen was our first choice, and fortunately all of the stars and planets aligned to bring her here."
Champion said Riordan will be the person students see most outside the classroom.
"They are going to see her every day, at lunch, in recess and in their classrooms," she said. "We want our kids to be able to come in from recess and move into the cafeteria in a way that is not disruptive for other students in their classrooms."
Riordan will excel at her new position, Champion predicted.
"She is bringing fresh ideas to us, allowing us to look at things in different ways," Champion said. "She was a consensus candidate."
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