Veteran educator is new principal at Belleville East. Get to know her in this Q&A
Andrea Gannon started her career in education as a student teacher with a love for science at Belleville West High School.
Now, more than 30 years later, she’s the new principal of Belleville East.
After student teaching at Belleville West, Gannon went on to become a science teacher for one year in Okawville and then for five years at Belleville East before shifting to administration. She was associate principal at East for six years and then principal at Emge Elementary School for two years.
From there, she returned to District 201 as the director of curriculum and human resources for seven years. For the past decade, she was the director of alternative education until, at a special meeting held in late July, the board of education appointed Gannon as principal of Belleville East.
She replaces Josh Lane, who took a step away from principal duties over the summer for medical reasons and is now teaching at the district’s Center for Academic and Vocational Excellence, or CAVE, which houses the district’s alternative school as well as much of its expanding career and technical education programs.
Jacob Strausbaugh, who was assistant principal of the alternative school at the CAVE, is now serving in Gannon’s previous role, which has been updated to the title of director of the CAVE. Rashida McKinley is now assistant principal at the CAVE.
With the school year underway, the Belleville News-Democrat sat down with Gannon for a question-and-answer session:
What led you to pursue a career in education?
“It’s in my family. My father was a science teacher when I was younger,” Gannon said.
She remembers when she was really small, he would take her with to his open houses.
She said she was also always involved in sports, playing softball through college, and working in camps.
“I always just really worked well with … high school level teenagers, and I loved science,” Gannon said.
That’s what brought her to the education field, starting as a student teacher at Belleville West before teaching science and coaching softball in Okawville and then at Belleville East.
What are the most challenging and rewarding aspects of being a school administrator?
The most challenging thing right now for administrators on a day-to-day basis is social media, Gannon said.
At the class meetings all students had at the school recently, one point that administrators stressed was being cautious about what they post on social media, she said.
“The most rewarding (aspect) is seeing student success,” she said. “Students that sometimes feel defeated based on … their grades or maybe something with their home life, and helping and supporting them, and then seeing them walk across that stage and have a plan.
“And I think District 201 does a great job with the opportunities we provide to all students,” she added.
What are some of your priorities or goals for this school year?
Gannon was on the Belleville East campus for more than a decade before becoming principal at Emge Elementary School and then working in District 201’s central office.
“I think this campus, with the dynamics of the buildings, it’s difficult to provide a sense of community, because there are so many buildings and different departments,” she said.
One of her goals for this year is fostering a sense of community for students and among staff.
She said another priority was identified over the summer when the school’s assistant principals met with teachers, who said one of the areas they wanted to focus on was getting students to class on time.
The school has a new bell system and related policies this year, and Gannon said she’s hoping to help make progress on that.
Outside of those two things, and since she just came on board as principal in late July, Gannon said she’s talking to staff and observing things before making any changes.
“Right now, I’m doing a lot of listening and meeting with my department chairs and just trying to support them the best I can,” Gannon said.
What message do you have for students as they’re returning to school?
Gannon said her message for students is something she first heard from another administrator back when she was an assistant principal at Belleville East: “You have a choice on how you react every day in decisions you make.”
That was another point administrators emphasized at the class meetings, she said.
“That’s what I hope (students) did get out of those meetings, that you have a choice,” Gannon said. “You have a choice whether you seek out an administrator or teacher or social worker/counselor to ask for help. You have a choice on how you react to situations. And I just want them to know … that we’re here to help them.”
And parents?
Gannon said her message for parents is that Belleville East has a great structure in place to challenge and support their students academically and provide them valuable emotional support.
The district has brought on social workers at both campuses over the last few years who, along with administrators and teachers, provide social-emotional support services to students, she said.
Especially post-pandemic, Gannon said she’s seen an increase in students with social anxiety, and the services provided by the social workers and other staff have been successful in helping those students transition back into the school setting.
She added that as a parent herself, she wants parents to know “that we’re going to treat every child as if they were our own and that Belleville East is a safe place.”
What do you like to do in your free time?
There are two things Gannon said she likes doing in her free time with her husband that are most precious to her.
The first is spending a lot of time with her twin granddaughters. They just turned 1 last week, she added as she looked back at a canvas photograph over her desk of them.
The second is fishing, which is another way she’s followed in her father’s footsteps.
“That is my release,” she said. “There’s nothing better than … sitting in a boat in a boat before the sun’s coming up, and you just hear the sounds of nature, and you relax and fish.”
