Straub Middle School principal Laura Perez, top left, is taking a district job in the fall. New principals for the 2019-20 school year are Beth Freeborn, top center, (Battle Creek), Ingrid Ceballos (Four Corners) Karl Paulson, bottom left (Forest Ridge), Tom Charboneau (Gubser) and Dave Berthlof (Pringle)
Six local schools will have new principals in the fall following two promotions, a retirement and several changes to give current principals new experience.
Straub Middle School and five elementary schools – Battle Creek, Forest Ridge, Pringle, Gubser and Four Corners – will see new leaders.
Laura Perez is leaving her job as Straub Middle School principal to take a principal coach job with the district. Coaches work with principals on professional development.
Perez has been at Straub for five years and previously worked for 10 years as a teacher at South Salem High School, six as a curriculum assistant principal at West Salem High School, seven years as a principal at Whiteaker Middle and five years as principal at Straub.
A search is currently underway for her replacement, district spokeswoman Lillian Govus said.
At Battle Creek, current Principal Linda Dougherty is also taking a principal coach job at the district. She’s been a principal since 2005 and worked at Pringle Elementary for five years before becoming Battle Creek’s first principal when the school opened in 2012.
Beth Freeborn, now an assistant principal at Keizer Elementary, will lead Battle Creek in the fall. She’s worked her entire career in Salem-Keizer, starting as a teacher at Auburn Elementary, then moving into an instructional coach and assistant principal jobs.
Ingrid Ceballos is the new principal for Four Corners, replacing Phil Decker, who’s been at the school for a decade. Decker is retiring from school management to teach high school social studies.
Ceballos is from Los Angeles and started her Salem career as a bilingual teacher in 2006. Since 2016, she’s been the instructional mentor at Richmond Elementary School.
Three elementary schools are rotating principals, something Govus said is done regularly to give staff more experience.
Pringle Elementary Principal Karl Paulson will move to Forest Ridge in Keizer. Tom Charboneau, current principal of Forest Ridge and Optimum Learning Environments Charter School, will lead Gubser Elementary. Gubser Principal Dave Bertholf will move to Pringle.
Reporter Rachel Alexander: [email protected] or 503-575-1241.
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Rachel Alexander is Salem Reporter’s managing editor. She joined Salem Reporter when it was founded in 2018 and covers city news, education, nonprofits and a little bit of everything else. She’s been a journalist in Oregon and Washington for a decade. Outside of work, she’s a skater and board member with Salem’s Cherry City Roller Derby and can often be found with her nose buried in a book.
