SLHS assistant principal leaving for Allendale post

Mon, May 18, 2009    to del.icio.us

Dan Remenap may be leaving the Spring Lake school district, but he's not venturing too far.

After his third year as Spring Lake High School's assistant principal, Remenap will be taking over as the principal at Allendale High School in the fall and said he is excited to begin his new post.

"I just want to go there and observe a while and work to make Allendale one of the best high schools in West Michigan," he said.

Before coming to Spring Lake, Remenap, 37, spent 11 years as a math and English teacher in Grandville, where he currently lives with his wife Lesa and daughters Madelynn, 8, and Marlee, 6.

Before moving to Grandville, Remenap and his family lived in Allendale, he said, something that influenced his decision to seek the job there.

"The ability to be a building principal was nice," he said, "but (in Allendale) the key people were already there and I knew they have a strong set of community values."

According to Spring Lake Assistant Superintendent Mark Westerburg, Remenap was chosen from a pool of 37 applicants, many of whom already have experience as high school principals.

"He's a good young candidate with good academic focus," Westerburg said. "Allendale's getting him at the right time."

The Spring Lake and Allendale districts share many traits, Westerburg said, such as size and a trimester system, that should help Remenap in the transition to his new job. And while Remenap has done a great job, administrators always assume assistant principals will be training and looking elsewhere, he added.

"Spring Lake High School is a good training ground for administrators," he said. "Dan has done a really great job, he's a good young principal and we're happy for his opportunity and wish him the best of luck."

Remenap will be replacing the retiring Steve Scholten at Allendale and said his experience at Spring Lake has helped him become a better listener and to better assess situations amongst students and staff members. And the inter-county move will help him stay in touch with many friends he's made at Spring Lake.

"I've definitely made some lifelong friends here," he said, "so I definitely won't be completely severing ties with Spring Lake."