St. James picks Buchholz as new principal

WASHINGTON — After 24 years as a teacher and principal at the Washington school district, Erik Buchholz has signed on for next school year as the principal at St. James, a private, Catholic school just a few blocks from his former district’s administrative office.

The former teacher-turned-principal-turned-teacher again said he had parted with Washington schools under the district’s early retirement package, but found himself returning to education all the same.

“It’s something for me to be able to share what talents I have in a way that I think God has directed me to do,” Buchholz said. “What impact I can have on St. James will obviously be yet to be determined, but I feel like I’m a great fit for St. James and I feel like they’re a great fit for me.”

After a job interview he called, “very comfortable,” and conversations with some St. James staff, Buchholz said the position felt like a good fit.

With roughly 120 kids enrolled from preschool to fifth grade, St. James comes with a smaller, younger student body than Buchholz is used to, however.

“I have taught anywhere from sixth grade through 12th grade, principal of anywhere from ninth through 12th grade,” he said. “I have not worked anywhere with three-year-olds through fifth grade. So there’s going to be a little bit of a learning curve that goes along with the process.”

The transition from a public to private school is also likely to present some challenges. Buchholz said he was confident in the system at St. James, however.

“The public school system has, I think, a much more rigid process,” he said. “Let’s just say, as an example, I have a teacher that is sick a day, and I’m unable to locate subs … everybody, from what I’ve heard of, will step in with no problem. That’s just not an issue, it just gets taken care of. The best way to describe it would be like a close family, how we look out for each other.”

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Worth noting, Buchholz is not Catholic, although he is Christian.

Pastor Bernie Weir said that wasn’t out of the ordinary for staff at the Catholic elementary school.

“We hire an administrator and can teach them the Catholic things they need,” he said. “We look first for an administrator, not a Catholic. If we happen to hire an administrator that’s Catholic, that’s an added bonus!”

Rebecca Clarahan, the previous St. James principal, announced her plans to retire in November, at the end of the 2022-23 school year. While the school has interviewed several candidates since then, Weir said Buchholz was an obvious choice thanks to his experience in the Washington CSD’s higher grades, where most St. James students end up for middle school and high school.

“To make sure we have that relationship, and that we’re meeting everything we need to have our kids ready to move, is a good thing,” Weir said. “He already knows the system and knows how to make the transition from St. James to public easier for them.”

St. James school board president Dan Berdo said he agreed.

“We had some good candidates, but it stood out that Erik, being in public, saw the product that St. James puts out, coming into the public school,” he said. “I think it’s a little bit of a credit to St. James that Erik, taking an early retirement out of public, wants to come be a part of St. James.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com