Kentwood — Chad Nielsen is the new assistant principal at East Kentwood High School. He took a break days before the start of school from helping students get registered to chat with SNN.
Other positions you have held in education: Nielsen worked in several positions at Grand Rapids Public Schools for 15 years prior to coming to East Kentwood:
- Social studies teacher at University Prep Academy
- Assistant principal at Harrison Park Academy, a pre-K-through-8 building
- Principal at Kent Hills Elementary
- Executive director of the Northwest quadrant of schools
He also taught for National Heritage Academy schools for three years, and started his career teaching social studies in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
‘As an administrator I feel if I can impact instruction, then it’s a multiplier effect with kids.’
— Chad Nielsen, East Kentwood High School assistant principal
What about jobs outside of education? “I worked at a fast food restaurant, a Hot ’n Now, for the first couple years that I was in college. I think they made some bad business decisions by putting 18- and 19-year-olds as managers. … They went bankrupt, and I’m pretty sure it was me and my buddies that ran the places into the ground. I gave away a lot of free burgers. … It was just fun; it was a good time.”
Also, in college and in between teaching jobs, Nielsen worked at Pep Boys. A conversation with the husband of a principal at NHA while Nielsen was stocking shelves led him to apply for a job as a reading and math interventionist at Timberland Charter Academy in Muskegon.
Education and degrees:
- Associate degree, Grand Rapids Community College
- Bachelor’s in education and master’s in education leadership, Grand Valley State University
What drew you to East Kentwood High School and Kentwood Public Schools? “For me, it was an opportunity to learn and grow and get back to being as impactful as I possibly could be. As a teacher, I felt working with kids in a close capacity was really impactful. To give back to the high school, work with high-school students and help them achieve their visions is really important to me.”
He said he knew Kentwood is a destination district, but had never been to the district before.
“When I met Principal (Omar) Bakri here, I was like ‘Wow, I fully understand why this is a destination district.’
“The administration here is really supportive — a very fun team to be around. The facilities are second to none. I just can’t say enough about the staff and how the district is setting the students up for success and providing the best possible experiences for them.”
Why did you want to become an administrator? “The opportunity to impact systems and the greater overall community is a strong draw. As a teacher … I felt the opportunity to impact small groups of students in strong, meaningful ways was there, but as I grew my craft and worked with other teachers, it felt like kind of a natural transition along the way.
“(Also) I had a lot of student teachers and helped them grow their craft as well, so as an administrator, especially as an assistant principal at Harrison Park, that was something I was able to develop quite a bit, too: getting into classrooms, working with teachers, helping them identify growth edges and supporting instruction.
“Growing education and growing instructional competencies is something I feel very strongly about. As an administrator I feel if I can impact instruction, then it’s a multiplier effect with kids.”
What would you like to share about your family? “I have a 5-year-old, Lincoln, starting kindergarten this year. My wife, Liz Nielsen, is a social worker at Sparta.”
Name three great things about K-12 education: One, “Providing opportunities for kids to thrive and excel.” Two, “Quality teaching. I say that about every place that I’m at. There are great teachers everywhere. I love K-12 public education for the quality of teachers that we have.” And three, “Extra and co-curricular opportunities for students to have experiential learning is an awesome, awesome thing as well.”
Describe your leadership style in seven words or less: “A positive, collaborative leader that expects greatness.”
What ideas or strategies will you bring to Kentwood from your last position? “There are a lot of similarities between my last job and things we are doing here in this district. We worked very strongly on (professional learning communities) to impact instructional growth, so having a really strong background in PLCs is very transferable.
“(Also,) there’s a strong emphasis on using Capturing Kids’ Hearts here. That was something we had a really strong emphasis on many years ago at National Heritage Academies.”
Dogs or cats and why? “Dogs. Cats do what they want. They don’t care if you are there or not. Dogs are companion animals. They greet you at the door. I’m making a connection here, too: What provides a better sense of belonging? Dogs are pack animals, so there’s a sense of belonging with them.”
What song would you pick to define you? “Simple Man,” by Shinedown
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