SKOKIE SCHOOL DISTRICT 69: Lincoln Junior High welcomes new principal

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Updated: October 31, 2011 11:37AM

Lincoln Junior High has a new principal.

Members of Skokie School District 69 board approved a one-year, $105,500 contract with Paul Bleuher to head the school, which serves about 550 students from Morton Grove and Skokie.

Bleuher came to education by way of finance.

“I was a commodities trader, but the markets changed,” he said. “I had just gotten married. And I wanted something more. I was always interested in education.”

Bleuher earned his bachelor’s degree from Eastern Illinois University at Charleston; a master’s degree in education from Benedictine University at Lisle; a master’s in educational leadership from Concordia University at River Forest; and is enrolled in a doctoral program at Northern Illinois University at Dekalb.

When not busy with his four children Bleuher said he enjoys reading, music and outdoor activities such as hiking, biking and skiing.

His college classes in political science and pre-law helped fuel his love of learning, he said.

“I had a good time in trading,” Bleuher said.

But a career in education kept beckoning.

“I enjoy education,” he said. “I have a passion for it.”

The financial growing pains facing Skokie School District 69 are similar to those faced by Darien District 63, where he spent the past eight years, Bleuher said.

District 69 has had to cut back on music and art programs, as well as redesign its English Language Learners program to help make ends meet.

The district offers a few challenges.

The changes in demographics and the variety of languages spoken in students’ homes, and like most other school districts, finances, all are among the issues Bleuher said he’s ready to address.

“I’ve looked at some of the initiatives the district has,” he said. “The teachers and the staff have demonstrated such a desire to go above and beyond.

“For all the naysayers, these people are not in it for the paycheck. They’re here for the right reasons. The people here in the (school) buildings, the parents — they’re invested.

“It’s going to be a challenge, but with that kind of support, I’m excited about that challenge.”