Most people are those of habit, home and continuity, so acclimation into new environments can be difficult.  Current Solon High School’s (SHS) Assistant Principal to seniors and sophomores Carla Rodenbucher transferred from her principal position Roxbury Elementary.

SHS Principal Erin Short believes any transfer can be difficult but especially one from an elementary school to a high school. Regardless, she sees a relatively straightforward approach by Rodenbucher that reflects positively on her work ethic.

“Mrs. Rodenbucher has worked very hard and hit the ground running in June to make the transition as smooth as possible,” Short said. “She has spent countless hours learning our procedures and protocols and has acclimated well with the high school administrative team.”

She says working with a team that offers knowledge and experience that has helped her incredibly with her transition. Seeing now the difference between elementary and high school kids as well as sophomores and seniors, she is able to understand better what kids are focused on and what things they’re interested in.

“The seniors are more goal driven and know what they need to do, they know what their plans are after [high school], most of them do,” Rodenbucher said. “Some of them are still kind of exploring that. They definitely seem to kind of know the rules of the school and know what you can and can’t do here where Sophomores are still trying to figure it out. They got one year under their belts, their Freshman year is over so that newness had kind of worn out for them but they’re still very focused though on their grades and stuff but I think some of them see their schedules are a little bit more than they can tackle.”

Regardless of her recent transfer, she finds herself developing relationships with the kids and creating healthy connections with the student body as a whole. Rodenbucher says that she will get kids coming into her office with disciplinary, personal, academic and family issues.

“I think that I feel like I’m respected, but yet they know that they can come to me if the need any help, or they can walk in and say ‘Hey, can you help me with this?’ and I’m out and about,” she said.

SHS Security Guard Alan Bradley believes some kids are more open to a relationship with Rodenbucher than others but that could be a problem with authority.

Short notices similar developments and says it is Rodenbucher’s ease into familiarity with students and teachers that creates a foundation for relationships.

“Developing relationships takes time and trust, and I believe Mrs. Rodenbucher is working hard to not only put in the time to get to know kids but also develop their trust,” Short said.

Despite this, Rodenbucher notices improvements that she can make that will further her integration into the school’s culture.

“I try not to stay in my office too much but I feel like that’s the one thing that I really need to work on is getting out more,” Rodenbucher said. “I feel like when I was the elementary principal I was never in my office, I was always walking around.”

Rodenbucher tries to unite her personal values with those surrounding her work ethic. Living by these personal rules she hopes to set a good example for students and colleagues alike.

“I have three things that I try to practice, be kind to others, stay humble and be thankful for what you have, and the other one is work hard, she said. “So I think that those are the three things I try to practice and they’ve always been my three things.”