WESTBROOK – Jennifer Mull-Brooks, one of two new assistant principals at Westbrook High School, didn’t travel the traditional route to her new post, but believes her past has given her unique insights to field the challenges of her new job.

Mull-Brooks, who is 46 and a mother of five, has overcome multiple challenges since her high school days, including dropping out of school for a short time, becoming a teen mom, and later, losing a daughter to brain cancer.

However, after serving double duty between college classes and her children, Mull-Brooks has more than a decade of teaching experience under her belt in Westbrook, and continues to take graduate courses at the University of Southern Maine, despite already earning a master’s in education and a Certificate of Advanced Study in Educational Leadership from the college.

“My kids are always my priority,” she said about her road through college. “They have watched me graduate from USM three times.”

Married to Portland Fire Lt. John Brooks, Mull-Brooks also has three stepsons, two of whom are graduates of Westbrook High School.

Transitioning last month to assistant principal from the chairwoman of Westbrook’s alternative education department, Mull-Brooks has also taught students in adult education, who return to school to gain their diploma.

In alternative education, she said, the often-difficult work of teaching at-risk students requires a connection with the students, gaining trust and understanding; something she hopes to utilize in the assistant principal role. She is currently handling grades 9-11, but will handle freshmen and juniors only once the second newcomer, Wendy Harvey, joins the department next month.

The American Journal spoke with Mull-Brooks recently about her past and how she plans to apply her experiences to her job.

Q: What inspired you to apply for the assistant principal job? What do you think you can bring to the job? What are you hoping to get out of it?

A: This is the 12th year I have been in the Westbrook School Department. I feel I understand the needs of our students, faculty, and staff. I have committed myself to becoming an informed and authentic educational leader by pursuing degrees and certifications in the field and by learning as much about our community as possible. I want to help make Westbrook High School a place where students meet and exceed their potential, academically and as citizens. Westbrook High School students matter to me; I look at them each day and ask myself – what would I want for my own children? Then I take steps to meet those standards.

Q: You are transitioning from chairwoman of the department’s alternative learning program. Tell me a little about the work you did there, and how it can translate in your new role.

A: I began working with at-risk WHS students in 2003. What I found was that when you invest in a student – in building a positive relationship with them that allows for them to trust you and believe in you enough for them to listen to what you have to say – you will hook them not only for a school year, but for life. With at-risk students, you get back your efforts three-fold once they believe that you actually care about them. To me, this part of the assistant principalship is very similar. It’s not always easy to look beyond the behaviors, but when you do – when you take the time to try and understand why a student is lashing out or shutting down – you show students you have not quit on them.

Q: You also taught adult education between 2005-2010. What is that experience like compared to teaching children and adolescents?

A: The adult learners I taught were almost always 19- and 20-year-old high school dropouts. It was very similar to teaching in my classroom – high-interest lessons with a lot of differentiation.

Q: Along with another newcomer, Wendy Harvey, you are filling the roles vacated by Tim Stebbins and Howard Jack. Did you have any learning experience or job shadowing with them?

A: Having worked at WHS for so long in alternative learning, I had the fortunate advantage of informally shadowing administrators since the day I began teaching there. I learned a lot from both of them, along with all of the other administrators at WHS and WRVC – Marc Gousse, Matt Nelson, Kate Hersom, Todd Fields and Sandy Peabody – all have taught and mentored me, formally and informally.

Q: You were in Westbrook last year during the controversy surrounding the handling of student-athlete suspensions and the related fallout. If faced with similar situations as assistant principal, what do you think the key is to handling them?

A: This is difficult to answer as I was at the middle school last year and am not privy to the exact details of what occurred. Philosophically, I tend to be the kind of person who “turns the page.” I like to look forward to what is coming, as I have some power to change that. Losing my daughter and taking care of my surviving children has taught me this. I tend to learn from the past, while focusing on creating a better future within every aspect of my life. I am quite sure this will be the case at WHS in my new role. When it comes to handling any student behaviors, I look to policy for answers; policy is never personal. This is part of how I maintain positive relationships with students – pointing to expectations in the student handbook while trying to teach students a better way with a sincere, non-judgmental approach.

Q: As the chairwoman of alternative learning, what has the experience been like during changes throughout the last few years, as English Language Learner populations have doubled and other specialized programs have expanded?

A: It has been nothing but positive from our department’s perspective. Our ELL students inspire me. When I learn about some of their paths to WHS, I am in awe of their strength and perseverance. They teach students and teachers alike in this manner. If I worry, I worry about resources in the district to truly address the needs of our ELL students; that is my biggest concern. I want to be sure we are offering these students the best chance at an education at WHS.

Q: While you were in high school, what was your experience with your assistant principals? Has that shaped how you will approach the job in Westbrook?

A: When I first interviewed for my job in alternative learning, I was worried about my journey there. I was not a traditional teacher-candidate. In high school, I was in honors classes and a varsity athlete. However, in my junior year, I hit some bumps – big ones. I left home and dropped out of school due to clashes with parents and a boy they didn’t approve of. On the assistant principal daily absence list at Deering, my brothers told me I was listed as “lost interest.” I hadn’t lost interest at all; life was just getting in the way. WHS students face these situations daily. I can relate. When I “lost interest,” no one encouraged me to return and I didn’t know how to fix my mistake. Being able to empathize on this level of “fixing or repairing” mistakes helps me relate to students most likely to engage with an assistant principal.

When I returned to school the following year, I was a mom. I graduated with a baby girl, wearing her own cap and gown, on my hip. Having gone through challenges in my life, I feel as though I am able to be empathetic toward our student population. Nothing engages a disenfranchised student more than the rare occasions I choose to share the words, “I was a high school dropout.” However, I am not just a high school dropout. I have lived the core values of WHS – aspirations, integrity, and perseverance. I went back to school and got a high school diploma. I finished my bachelor’s in the wake of my daughter’s passing, then continued on to two advanced degrees while working, grieving, mom-ing and coaching.

I hope that WHS students see me as someone they can relate to, someone who has walked the walk, so to speak. That is most important.

Jennifer Mull-Brooks