School district fills principal slots from within

MAT-SU — Three new faces around the Mat-Su Borough School District are taking leadership of three different schools in the Valley.

Su Valley Jr./Sr. High School, the Correspondence Study School and Knik Elementary School will all have new principals for the coming school year. Each hire was found within the district.

John Brown

At the Correspondence Study School, John Brown, who has more than 20 years’ experience in the Mat-Su school district, has been principal at Trapper Creek Elementary in Talkeetna for the past year. A former teacher in the district, Brown, with degrees from both Alaska Pacific University and the University of Alaska Anchorage, was present for the openings of Colony Middle School and Teeland Middle School.

Rob Picou

In Su Valley, Rob Picou, who has been the principal of Burchell High School, brings a resumé filled with principal positions across the state. The Tulane University and University of New Orleans graduate has served on committees dealing with dropout prevention, curriculum and policy review, among others, with the Mat-Su district and the North Slope Borough School District.

Traci Pederson

Coming from Wasilla Middle School, where she served as assistant principal, Traci Pederson earned degrees from the University of Alaska. Beginning her teaching career in Bush Alaska, Pederson was a member of the Aleutians East Borough School Board. Pederson, whose husband is a commercial fisherman, is also a member of the Alaska Association of School Boards.