Community leaders serve as 'Principal for a Day' at U-46 schools

Elgin Area School District U-46 hosted its eighth annual "Principal for a Day" event Thursday with more than 50 community leaders taking on principal duties at schools districtwide.

The program offers local business, government and nonprofit leaders and volunteers a behind-the-scenes look at all the responsibilities of a principal and the day-to-day routines and demands.

Wayne Village President Eileen Phipps served as acting principal at Willard Elementary School in South Elgin.

Phipps sat in on a reading class with her granddaughter during one of her stops Thursday morning. She toured the school meeting all the students and helped supervise the painting/priming of the community garden fence across from the school.

She said she enjoyed listening to a group of sixth-graders sing and play the ukulele during one of the school's music classes.

"The kids are so welcoming and it's neat to listen to how articulate they are," she said. "This is much more fun than my normal work day."

During the lunch rush, Phipps helped serve students their lunch.

At the end of their school day, community leaders were treated to lunch at Villa Olivia in Bartlett.

"This annual event gives our community leaders a chance to experience school life through an entirely new lens," U-46 CEO Tony Sanders said. "We value the participation and involvement of our U-46 community leaders as together we work to celebrate and improve our schools.