Forest Hills — Gabrielle Kokenakes is at one of her favorite school activities, car line, where she welcomes students as they are dropped off at Ada Elementary.
Just as the new Ada Elementary principal is wrapping up, a parent drives over and comments about how she was the perfect person for the position.
Walking back to the school, Kokenakes, with her megawatt smile, said it was the support of such parents that encouraged her to apply for the principal position — and, she added, it was definitely the right decision.
“I was a little unsure,” Kokenakes said. “I have a 2-year-old son at home, and so it’s a big job and it’s a really big responsibility, and when I do something, I really like to give 110%. So I wanted to make sure that I could be a mom and be so present here.”
She said she found the Ada staff to be “so collaborative and supportive,” and that her school family made her feel like she could “be mom and then also do what I love so much, which is being right alongside teachers, right alongside kids and staff, supporting kids every day.”
Other positions you have held in education:
- Elementary teacher at Knapp Forest
- District-wide multi-tiered system of supports district instructional coach and gifted services coordinator
- Supervisor of student support systems, Ada Elementary
- Elementary teacher, Community Consolidated School District 62, Des Plaines, Illinois
- Elementary teacher, Grand Rapids Public Schools
Jobs outside of education: Kokenakes’ first job was a cashier at the city pool in Port Huron, where she lived. One of her favorite jobs was working at American Eagle, which she did until she graduated from high school.
“At Michigan State University, I worked at Wharton Center because I’m really into Broadway and I was in a million musicals growing up, so I love all of that. Working at Wharton Center as an usher was really fun because I got to see all the shows for free, which was amazing.”
Education/degrees:
- Bachelor’s in elementary education with a specialization in language arts and teaching English as a second language, Michigan State University
- Master’s in teaching and curriculum, MSU
- Doctorate in educational leadership, MSU
What drew you to Ada Elementary? “I had worked with so many teachers as an instructional coach previously at Ada, and had so much respect for the staff and love for the students, and the families have always just been so incredible. I wasn’t here every day or anything. I just was here kind of intermittently and kind of in and out. But I just knew that this was a place that was really special and that I really was hoping to be.” Kokenakes said the opportunity to move to Ada Elementary happened last year when she became the school’s supervisor of student support systems.
Why did you want to become an administrator? “When I first started out, I really did not want to go into administration at all. … I loved the relationships that you make with your 24 kids that are sitting in your class and with the families. I had really amazing principals along the way who shifted things for me and that was really especially true in Forest Hills. (They) shaped my perspective on what a leader really can do and how a leader can propel you and see you for all of your potential. … So having just those incredible mentors and having those leaders that I had worked under really made me change my mind.”
What would you like to share about your family? Kokenakes and her husband, Charlie, have a son, Cohen, who just turned 2, and a German shorthaired pointer named Rue.
Describe your leadership style in seven words or less: “Celebrate and notice big and small joy. That’s something that is really a mantra that I think about every minute of every day. … Education’s a really hard job and teachers have a lot on their plates, and all staff do so much. So just being present, celebrating the big and small joys, I think can shift your whole day. Because even when we have hard days, there’s always joy.”
What song would you pick to define you? “Walking on Sunshine,” by Katrina and the Waves
What was your first concert? Kokenakes is a big Taylor Swift fan and has been to all of her tours.
What book, movie, TV show, or podcast have you loved lately? “100-Day Leaders: Turning Short-Term Wins Into Long-Term Success in Schools,” by Robert Eaker and Douglas Reeves.
“It’s really just thinking about all the challenges as leaders that we face, and the biggest one being time constraints, which is something that’s always on my mind because we never have enough time to do what we need to do.
“I also have a passion for children’s literacy and love reading with my son Cohen. Right now we’re really into ‘Every Monday Mabel’ (by Jashar Awan), which is about a little girl who waits at the end of the drive every Monday for the garbage truck. It’s that joy, noticing and celebrating. Cohen is really obsessed with space and planets so we’ve been reading a million books about that.”
What is one thing on your bucket list? “We love to travel and we are hoping to get Cohen to 20 different countries before he turns 18.”
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