Northview — Trevor Chalmers, the new assistant principal for Crossroads Middle School, is a Northview Wildcat through and through. His grandparents built a house in the district, and it’s the same house where he and his family now live. He spent all his K-12 years in Northview — including time as a student in the very same building he now helps lead — and is a proud member of the Northview High class of 1993. His kids also are, or will be, Northview grads. And this fall he’s entering his 20th year working in the district (and his 29th year in education).
“It’s always been a really tight-knit community, and the school system is that anchoring point for the community,” Chalmers said of Northview. “There’s so many aspects of this school system that are attractive. … A lot of my closest friends are those that I went to school with through high school. My wife’s not from Northview, so she’ll tell you that it’s a little unique to see everyone so connected. But I think that’s why it’s special.
“I had a great experience coming up in these schools, and through athletics, and I want families and students that are now in our system to have the same experience I did.”
Get to know the new assistant principal better in this edition of Meet Your Administrators:
Other positions you’ve held in education: An avid basketball player as a student, Chalmers’ #1 goal was to one day become a varsity basketball coach, and athletics have played a role throughout his career. He started as a high school math teacher and boys and girls basketball coach in Forest Hills Public Schools. He then moved to Wyoming Public Schools to become Rogers High School’s varsity basketball coach and high school math and science teacher.
Twenty years ago, he had the opportunity to return to Northview as the varsity basketball coach and high school math teacher. Since then, he’s held the following additional teaching and coaching positions for the district:
- Middle school basketball coach
- High school football coach
- DK-12 math instructional coach
- 7-12 general instructional coach
Education/degrees:
- Bachelor’s degree in education with a focus on math and physics, Grand Valley State University
- Master’s degree in educational leadership, Michigan State University
Why did you want to become an administrator? “Taking on a bigger leadership position; I wanted to kind of challenge myself to grow professionally. What first drew me to instructional coaching was being able to support staff and look for ways to increase and improve the student experience at Northview. I wanted to improve professional learning. … I see (being an AP) as an extension of that. Now I get the opportunity to do that for a specific building. I love the staff here, so I want to do anything I can to help them grow and improve, which will then improve the experience for the students and families in our community. I’m going to learn as we go a little bit, but a goal of mine is always to help other people shine.”
What kind of student were you at Hills and Dales Middle School (now known as Crossroads)? “I played sports, I was a good student, I was social. I had a large friend group. I wouldn’t say things always came easy to me, but I could generally take care of business in the classroom. I was goofy enough to probably drive some teachers nuts a little bit — I could have a smart mouth at times.”
Chalmers said basketball was already a big deal for him in middle school; he remembers shooting hoops with neighborhood friends at Hills and Dales and playing three-on-three tournaments on the courts behind the school building.
Part of those basketball courts were later covered when Crossroads built new locker rooms; it’s just one of several small changes Chalmers has encountered in returning to the building as an administrator.
“I’ll have these funny flashbacks to how things were when I lived it. Like, I had some silly part in the middle school play, on stage in the cafeteria — but that stage has been ripped out to create more space. I took wood shop, and that classroom use has kind of diminished, but now it’s coming back again. So it’s strange to watch these things go through these cycles. … Just thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, I used to walk these halls as a kid, goofing around or playing basketball,’ it’s pretty strange.”
What would you like to share about your family? He and his wife, Sheila, have been married just over 20 years and have three children: Ethan, a 2025 NHS grad, Lincoln, a 2026 grad, and Colette, a sophomore. Sheila works downtown in the hospitality and convention industry.
“We’ve always been really involved in terms of what the kids are involved in at school; the boys were both into sports and Colette is more on the artistic side. … As a family, we enjoy being around water and we have a little place on a lake.”
Is there a book, show or podcast you’ve enjoyed recently? Chalmers said he typically gravitates toward nonfiction reading, but after having back surgery this past spring, he suddenly got into “a lot of Star Wars books.”
“People say I have to read more fiction, so I picked one to read and then was like, ‘Well, now I’m curious about all the stuff that’s not in the movies.’ And then it just spiraled. I read more of those this summer than I’ve ever done in my life.”
How will you encourage student voice at Crossroads? “One thing that is really important to me is how students represent and support their peers during athletic events. So I’ve been thinking about … what the student experience is for those that aren’t necessarily part of the teams, but do want to be around to support them. I want to get feedback from students on what that could look like and how can we make it better.
“Another part will be about my visibility in school — at extracurricular events, at those athletic events, after-school activities, just being around in the hallways. It’s about engaging in conversations with students on how things are going for them, what challenges they’re facing or seeing what we might be able to improve. That will be big for me.”
What is one thing on your bucket list? As a season-ticket holder for University of Michigan football, Chalmers’ goal is to start attending more away games at different venues such as Washington, Oregon or USC.
What was your first concert? Smashing Pumpkins at the Breslin Center.
Describe your leadership style in seven words (or thereabouts):
- Servant leadership
- Listening to understand
- Reflection
- Improvement
- Common ground
What is it about middle school that excites you as a leader? “For me, it’s the positive energy. High school, which I was in forever, is good energy, but it’s a bit more serious. I think in middle school, they’re still enjoying things for the most part — it’s a different vibe, where they’re still holding on to being a kid just a little bit. That energy has been a draw for me.
“We have the opportunity to help students transition through some pretty challenging years in terms of growth and development and all the changes they go through. We also get to prepare them for high school on top of all that, and that’s another piece that’s really drawn me in.”
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