A Pittsburgh-area native who has spent most of her education career working in urban schools has come home - and started a new chapter - here in Sto-Rox.
Raelyn Day, Assistant Principal for Grades 10-12.
Raelyn Day is entering her second month as Assistant Principal for Grades 10-12 at Sto-Rox Jr./Sr. High School.
“I knew that it was a place that I could really work with children who need some adults to be there for them, and to help make a difference,” said Day.
Becoming an administrator is an accomplishment Day has sought since her earliest days as an educator. A graduate of Pine-Richland High School, Day went to the University of Pittsburgh, including two years as a proud student at the school’s Greensburg campus. She also received her teaching certification from Robert Morris University.
Since there was a dearth of teaching jobs in the Pittsburgh area at that time, Day headed south to the nation’s capital.
“I was right outside of Washington, D.C., in Charles County (Maryland),” she explained. “I taught down there for a few years.”
Then, she took some time off to have children. Soon, the time was right to return to Pittsburgh.
After working as a substitute teacher, she hooked up with Pittsburgh Public Schools, where she spent the last nine years.
“I know that my experience and a lot of my education has led me to be successful in schools like this,” said Day.
Sto-Rox’s size - compared to PPS - is also a positive.
“You can see changes occurring on a smaller level, which is nice,” explained Day.
Day specializes in professional learning. In her conversations with Principal Kim Price, it was the academic side of instructional leadership - learning, simply put - that drew her to the job.
“Filling out the team and what they were looking for was the niche I had found for myself.”
Her colleagues have taken notice of what she brings to the table.
“You don’t just hire someone, and it happens,” said Will Cross, Assistant Principal for Grades 7-9. “She’s someone you can rely on.” He also praised her “professional comfort” and her prerequisites for the job.
“I think it’s a great team,” said Day. “We all have our strengths and it really allows us to work together and focus on the variety of issues that arise within the school day.”
As for the students, the ones Day is working with are closer to adulthood. Whether that means college preparation, job preparation, or something else - the basics still carry over from younger to older students.
“We often hold those older kids to a little higher standard an allowing them to be more active in the decision making process,” said Day. “Allowing students to do that is a big thing, while we’re focusing on academics and school safety.”
“Getting kids into classes and learning is the most important thing,” she said. That echoes what Cross spoke about in December, making sure hallways are clear and students properly transition to class.
In the long run, Day is concerned with making sure students graduate, not to mention student and teacher development plans outlined in the district’s comprehensive plan.
When it comes to graduation, it didn’t take long for Day to praise one of Sto-Rox’s chief cheerleaders in that area: Guidance Counselor Joe Herzing.
“He has been a great resource and he has definitely taken on so many things,” she said. “One of the things I’ve been working on with him specifically is testing. I’ve had experience as an AP testing coordinator, helping with some of the setup of that and the AP courses that are here as well as the Keystone (exams).”
An administrator’s role is not strictly educational support, though.
“Just being here for the whole child,” said Day, “and their social-emotional learning as well as their academics.
It’s a position that serves as a backstop for so many issues, not unlike the position she played during her years in college soccer: Stopper.
“That was so long ago!” she laughed. Her other active pursuits include a new passion - rowing - along with boating and camping. It all adds up to a rich and full life with her wife and two children, aged 12 and 11.
Add in a job she’s been preparing for whole career for, and you have a professional educator who is primed for success. It all boils down to a question - open-ended - that she and her colleagues will be answering every day.
“How can we best give the kids what they need?”