Chris Plucker selected as new principal at John Sager Middle School

College Place Public Schools announced on Thursday, March 16, that Chris Plucker is the new principal of John Sager Middle School.

Plucker, who is currently the assistant principal at Davis Elementary School in College Place, will begin his new position on Saturday, July 1. He accepted the position on Thursday pending approval from the College Place School Board at its meeting on Tuesday, March 28.

“I’m really looking forward to building off of the great things that Sager has done to date and just leading the staff to a brighter future,” Plucker said. “I have this vision of Sager being the place that kids want to be at and that parents are excited about.”

Plucker has worked in education for 16 years, six of which have been in College Place. He said many of the students at the Sager Middle School were students he already knew from Davis Elementary.

“That’s pretty cool, getting to get reacquainted with them,” Plucker said. “Middle school is such a hard time in children’s lives that we want to try to help those kids succeed while they’re navigating the hard world they live in.”

College Place Superintendent Jim Fry said the six-week search for a new principal was extensive and that Plucker was “absolutely the right choice.”

“Chris’ passion for young people is undeniable and his desire to support and work alongside the staff who serve them is unmatched,” Fry said. “I appreciated that from the day this position opened, Chris said he wanted to compete to show he was the right person for the role.”

School board member Mandy Thompson said the school board supported the recommendation of Plucker for the position.

“Chris is a talented and respected leader in our district who has shown he is the person to fill this important role,’’ Thompson said. “We look forward to Chris doing great things at Sager.”

Before being selected for the position, Plucker and other candidates met with parents and community members on Wednesday, March 15, for a community forum. He said parents were interested to know how he planned to communicate with them and how he would guide work around school, identity and culture.

“I shared that my goal this upcoming year is really to help Sager find a collective identity about who we are as a middle school,” Plucker said. “There’s been a lot of hard work at Sager, and I want to honor that work.”

Plucker said he plans to prepare for his new role over the next few months by talking with staff, students and parents.

“After spring break I’m going to start working on connecting with staff — getting to hear their hopes for the future, what they want to build upon and talking with parents and students,” Plucker said. “And I plan to attend at least one event for each sport.”

College Place Public Schools also announced on Thursday that the assistant principal position currently held by Plucker is now open and interested candidates can apply on the district’s website.