Mohr is new NHS principal
Contributed by Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
Clark County Press (Neillsville, WI) August 13, 1997
It’s official, Allen Mohr is the new principal at Neillsville High School. The Neillsville School Board on Monday approved the contract of the former math teacher at Neillsville High School.
That was the last step in the process that began in April to find a new principal to replace John Gaier, now the school district’s superintendent. Gaier replaced Richard Quast, who retired this year.
During the summer months, a selection committee of school and community members conducted an initial screening of 20 candidates for the principal’s position. Two of the 20 were teachers from within the Neillsville School District. Following review of applications, the committee recommended Mohr and two other candidates for interviews.
The school board, in a special closed meeting on July 28, interviewed the three candidates, and offered Mohr the position the next day. Mohr accepted on July 30. The job of high school principal was Mohr’s, pending final approval of his employment contract. As expected, the school board did just that in Monday’s meeting.
Mohr’s we years as a teacher at Neillsville will serve him well as the new principal, Gaier said. “His biggest advantage is knowledge of school policy and past practice,” he said.
“He’s going to have growing pains, but the (school) board obviously had faith that he could do the job,” said Gaier.
Neillsville is hometown to Mohr, 47, who graduated from the high school in 1968. He went on to UW-Eau Claire, graduating from there in 1972 with a teaching degree in math and physics. Mohr went on to attain a Masters in Teaching degree from UW-Eau Claire in 1991, and his degree in school administration from Winona State University, in Minnesota, in 1993.
Mohr lives in rural Neillsville with his wife, Debra, and their seven children.
He is looking forward to the challenge of fulfilling the responsibilities of high school principal, Mohr said. But he is also looking for input and help from teachers and staff that have been in place for a number of years.
The high school secretaries, Delilah Seelow and Linda Osegard, have been there since before he started teaching at Neillsville, Mohr pointed out. Their knowledge of established office procedure will be a benefit for him.
Discipline will also continue to be important in the halls and classrooms of the high school. “Dean Zaleski will be a big help,” Mohr said of the high school’s dean of students and truant officer.
“John Gaier will be a big help, too,” said Mohr, adding that is predecessor had set the right tone and direction during his four years tenure as principal.
“I’m comfortable with the system. I don’t see the need for any major changes,” the new principal said. “I feel that Neillsville has the best school system around. I don’t want that to change.”