TOWAMENCIN – As the new assistant principal at North Penn High School, Mr. Pete Nicholson started off with a relatively clean desk and clean slate – a new start of sorts for a person who is not new to career changes.

Nicholson, who is a graduate of Quakertown High School, didn’t start off as an assistant principal right off the bat.

“I was always into athletics and I played three sports in high school. I thought it would be pretty cool to be a Health and Phys Ed teacher so I actually did an internship at my high school, Quakertown High. I went to Ursinus College where I majored in exercise and sport science and got my certificate to teach Health and Phys Ed at the Allentown School District” explained the assistant principal.

But it wasn’t until seven years later that Nicholson finally found his calling.

“I figured I wanted to make the transition over to administration, and I’ve been an assistant principal for the last five years” added Nicholson.

Nicholson knows that coming into a new high school will certainly be a process that requires getting to know the lay of the land.

“My position being new to the school, I think is to sit back a little bit and see what’s going on. See how things work and get a good eye for that and bring some of my past experiences to the table and see how that might fit in with changing some things that I may see may need changing. And I think my primary mission is to make sure students get the education that they deserve, both in working with teachers to improve what’s going on in the classroom and working with students where behavior might be getting in the way with that, and just coordinating things that go on in school and make sure that the education happens.”

Every educational leader has a unique set of strengths and qualities that make him or her the right fit to work with students, and for Nicholson, he prides himself on his demeanor and his readiness, as well as his pure excitement for the new challenges ahead.

“I think I’m very well organized and I think I tend to stay very calm no matter what’s going on or what I’m doing, and I stay as calm as I can so I can make good decisions. I’m also energetic and I’m on the younger side I guess, and I’m excited to be here, which I think is half of everything. I’m going to come to North Penn High School everyday excited for what I do, excited to meet with students and get into the culture of the school. And I think that will show through with the job I do and how I work with students and staff” says Nicholson.