Among the new staff members starting at Cinnaminson High School this school year is Mrs. Kristin Melcher, the new director of English Language Arts Instruction. Melcher previously served as the former vice principal and then principal of Cinnaminson Middle School.
“The change was pretty smooth,” Melcher said. “It gave me a lot of comfort knowing that the position at the middle school was going into the hands of somebody with experience in the district and experience in administration.”
Melcher attended The College of New Jersey where she studied English and secondary education. Upon graduation, her certification allowed her to teach grades six through 12 before she stopped teaching to go into administration.
“So before I got into administration, I spent 12 years in the classroom teaching English language arts,” Melcher said, “All of those years were in middle school. I taught sixth grade, seventh grade, and eighth grade over the years. I also worked with special education co-teachers almost every single year that I taught.”
Melcher said she is very happy about returning to something that she loves – English.
“I got into education because I loved teaching reading and writing, and I certainly missed my connection to that subject area. So an opportunity to kind of get back to my roots, in a way really excited me, and a way to continue working in a district that I love.”
Having experience in both the classroom and administration, Melcher shares that she feels as if she’s in the perfect position as the new director.
“So I would say this is kind of my dream job. It really is, and I love it. People keep telling me I’m smiling all the time, so I take that as a good sign that it’s just, it’s my passion, it’s what I love.”
In her new role as director, Melcher does not teach any classes. Instead she visits all four schools of the Cinnaminson School District where she meets with all teachers involved with English and supports them.
“Actually it has been surprising to me how much there is to do. My office is located here at the high school, so a lot of days, my morning starts here, because it’s the first building in session, touching base with the teachers here, and seeing if anybody needs anything. But one of my big responsibilities is classroom observations,” Melcher said. “So I go into the classrooms to observe teachers teaching a lesson, and part of that process is meeting with them before.”
Melcher explains that in her new position she wants to be a good leader, build relationships with her co-workers, and support any teacher who needs it.
“For me, a really big part of being a good leader is building relationships first. So I want teachers to know that I’m in their corner. I’m someone there to support them, that they can have trust in me. They can come to me when they’re having a problem. I can help them solve it, or find a resource that will help us solve it.”
Melcher is optimistic about her new role. She is pleased and excited for this upcoming year and many more to come.
“But I’m really happy where I am right now, and I’ve already gone through enough change, so right now I’m really content, and I just want to grow in this role.”
