Dove hired as Bowler Elementary principal

A new principal at the Bowler Elementary School has ties to the district stemming all the way back to her childhood.

Brandi Dove recently took the position, replacing Wade Turner, who had served in that role for the past 10 years. Before getting her master’s degree in applied leadership for teaching and learning from UW-Green Bay, Dove spent eight years in the United States Marine Corps.

She began teaching in Jacksonville, North Carolina, before moving back to her childhood house in Bowler shortly thereafter. Dove has experience working in the Bowler School District as she was a second grade teacher, before spending the last five years of her career as a reading specialist.

“I was a student here at Bowler from fifth grade to ninth grade,” said Dove. “This is a spot that I have always wanted to be, and this is my opportunity.”

Dove said that using her past experiences, she thought that now was the right time to move into an administration role.

“When I was the reading specialist — just in that, I coached a lot of teachers on literacy instruction,” said Dove. “I was educated on so many different avenues of literacy. That was my responsibility — to ensure everyone was on the same page with literacy. In that position, I had a lot of leadership roles in smaller positions. Also, with my background of being in the Marine Corps, that is all leadership. With the leadership that I already had in that position and all of the relationships that I built with the staff, for me to become their principal, I thought it would have been crazy for me not to try.”

Part of the reason why Dove came back to Bowler and accepted first a teaching job and now an administration position is to help make a difference in an area close to her heart.

“My entire goal of coming back to Bowler was that if I could make a change anywhere, this is where I want to be,” said Dove. “As I have grown in my own educational leadership, I now not only impact students, I am impacting teachers. Now I have the opportunity to make the positive change that I originally wanted to make in the place that I grew up.”

Dove said that with her experience of being raised in Bowler, she can relate to similar situations that students today have while growing up.

“I feel like I can connect and that I can really understand some situations that the kids are coming from,” said Dove.

Bowler School District Superintendent Glenda Butterfield-Boldig also spoke on how Dove’s experiences in Bowler will be helpful for the school district.

“What really stood out to not only me but also the school board was her commitment to Bowler,” said Butterfield-Boldig. “She is Bowler. Having somebody who is absolutely, 100% all about Bowler is going to drive us in such a great direction.”

Butterfield-Boldig also noted Dove’s work ethic as a reason why she will succeed in this position.

“She is such a hard worker,” said Butterfield-Boldig. “You cannot put a task before Brandi that she won’t do to the absolute best of her ability and beyond.”

Looking toward the upcoming school year, Dove said that a change for her is that in administration, she will have a scope on the whole school, rather than just students.

“All of the decisions that you make will directly impact the entire school,” said Dove. “It is not just going to impact a lesson with a kid or a classroom of students. Decisions are not made lightly — you have to think about the vision for the school and make sure that the decisions you are making are aligned to the vision.”

In her first year as an administrator, one goal for Dove is to invite community members to volunteer more with the school.

“I sent a survey out last year, asking about volunteering,” said Dove. “The disconnect was that community members wanted to volunteer but were unsure about the opportunities (ahead of time). They also were unsure of the duties. I have been working to come up with things that will always be in place for volunteers and what that means to actually volunteer.”

According to Dove, another strategy to get more volunteers involved is to invite community members to parents’ nights and have them decide what the nights are about.

“If the kids are intertwined in activities, they are going to continue to attend,” said Dove. “If parents and community members are intertwined in the activities, they are going to want to continue to come as well. I just want to make a place where everyone is welcome and comfortable.”

She added that in order to continue to build relationships, she will be present in school and at community events.

“I am probably going to be the most visible person ever,” said Dove. “I want people to see me. I don’t want to be the person that someone has to find in my office.”

Dove summed up what community members can expect from her for the upcoming school year.

“My main goal is to make sure that everybody feels heard,” said Dove. “I feel like that is a big disconnect. Sometimes parents and community members have issues, and they do not feel heard. I also want the students to feel heard. I am a very understanding person, and I am pretty good at problem solving. I feel like there is nothing that a partnership between the school and the parents can’t figure out and fix.”

lreimer@newmedia-wi.com