At the end of June, Principal Michael McGrory will be leaving Central to assume a principal position at Muscatine High School in Iowa. He is leaving because the majority of his family is located in Iowa, and he wants to be closer to home.
“It really came down to family. When Olivia decided to go to Iowa University it started to seem like we would be too far away from everyone,” McGrory said.
The McGrory family moved to the area in 2010. For 20 years McGrory served as an administrator for an Iowa high school close to where he’s returning. He came to Central looking for a new experience for him and his family.
“I had only been an administrator in Iowa, and I wanted to see what it was like to be an administrator in another state because I had never done that. To come to a really high performing school was a really interesting challenge for me,” McGrory said.
According to McGrory, the move was a great administrative experience. He said that the passion at Central is something unique to this school.
“I’m going to miss a lot of things [about Central]. The students here are wonderful. The teachers here are incredible, and the parent support is outstanding. And that’s what makes Central so special, the combination of those three. That’s what will be hard to leave,” McGrory said.
Similarly, the move was a good experience for his daughter, Olivia, who moved here as a sophomore and will be graduating this year. Although she is excited to be back with her family, she will miss Hinsdale and the friends she has made. “I’m going to miss having a place not to come back to because on breaks I won’t be able to come back and see my friends,” Olivia said.
According to Ms. Sonia Gecker, English teacher and Drama club sponsor, McGrory’s impact on the school has been very apparent. She has several fond memories of McGrory’s gratitude for her teaching efforts and his impact on the drama program.
“I’ve only taught one year under [Mr. McGrory], but I will say that when I was hired last year, I remember sitting in his office talking about the future of the drama program. He looked me right in the eye and said, ‘I am such a supporter of the arts, and I agree with everything you’re saying. I know that together we can make that growth happen,’” Gecker said. “I have always felt like he was someone that supported the arts in this community.”
Over his career, McGrory has been a supporter of the school’s activities. He hopes that the renovations to the auditorium that took place this summer, specifically, and more upgrading like it in other areas of the school will continue after he leaves.
“I’m very proud that we’ve given a lot of support to all activities or sports, as far as helping them pay for expenses, and my hope is that that will all continue. Like the things we’ve done to upgrade the auditorium, hopefully that is just one step in many steps that will continue on,” McGrory said.
Although McGrory will not be here any longer, he admits that he has a special place in his heart for Central, and he has hopes that the school will continue to grow despite his absence.
“I think the one area that the district has been really looking at is what we can do to support students socially and emotionally. We know our students here are under pressures, internally and externally…That would be my hope, that things like that would be implemented to have an overall better school, socially and emotionally,” McGrory said.
For the beginning of next year, the school plans to install two interim principals, and the search for the new principal will begin in August after a search committe has been formed.
