Seeing kids succeed remains at the heart of former Jackson principal’s life

JACKSON, MI – Mary Jo Raczkowski-Shannon retired as principal of Hunt Elementary School this fall, ending a long career as one of Jackson Public Schools’ most popular administrators.

She stayed for about a month before returning to do one of the things she loves most: working with Jackson’s children.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re in a bad mood, kids can always brighten your day,” Raczkowski-Shannon said. “The kids are so supportive and so fun to be around.”

After the district’s mandatory 30-day separation following her retirement at the end of September, Raczkowski-Shannon returned to JPS on Nov. 11, now working as an “elementary school attendance success coach.”

In her new role, the 25-year former principal works with building attendance teams — typically made up of the school secretary and social workers — to ensure students are following attendance guidelines across the district .

If a student has missed too many days and has already received a phone warning and a letter sent to their home, Raczkowski-Shannon steps in.

“It’s different. It’s great not to be in charge,” Raczkowski-Shannon said. “I’m still learning every day and trying to improve it, improve it and make it my own.”

Raczkowski-Shannon’s career began in the fall of 1985, teaching third graders in Hartsville, South Carolina. Having worked briefly for Jackson Public Schools as a substitute teacher previously, she wasn’t in Hartsville long before a position opened up at Northeast Elementary School the following January.

She accepted the position and taught sixth grade math and science at Northeast for 11 years before becoming the school’s assistant principal. She also served as the cheerleading coach at Jackson High School for nearly a decade.

“She was the best boss. I’ve worked at three different schools and Mary Jo has run the best one,” said Janice Morris, a paraprofessional who has worked with Raczkowski-Shannon for 15 years. “The discipline was good, the children were well behaved and we had a lot of fun. »

Being a principal was a perfect fit for Raczkowski-Shannon, she said. After two years of helping lead Northeast, she became principal of Hunt Elementary and remained in that position for 25 years.

“No one knows Mary Jo, knows how hard she works and how dedicated she is to JPS,” Assistant Superintendent Kriss Giannetti said. “She is always the first person to do something and do it well, and she is a great mentor to other principals and teachers.” »

Prominent among the former principal’s contributions to the district was the introduction of the “balanced calendar” system at Hunt Elementary School.

Related: Jackson’s Hunt Primary School enjoys continued success thanks to balanced timetable

“People who work a balanced schedule love it,” Raczkowski-Shannon said. “That would probably be my proudest moment as a director.”

With a balanced schedule, students attend school 180 days a year, as required by Michigan public schools, but recess is spread out over the year instead of crammed into one long summer break. Hunt starts school around the first of August and classes end around the last week of June.

This gives students about six weeks of summer vacation, instead of the usual 12 weeks. Hunt switched to this schedule during the 2011-2012 school year, Raczkowski-Shannon said.

“Our teachers love it – they love this schedule,” Giannetti said. ‘It helps with the ‘summer slide‘ to be away from school for so long, so many of our families like this schedule.

More frequent breaks in the balanced schedule help reduce teacher and student absenteeism rates, Giannetti said.

Raczkowski-Shannon has never been a stranger to the academic environment. His father, sister and brother also taught in Jackson County school districts.

“It’s a family affair,” Raczkowski-Shannon said with a laugh.

She chose to retire this year because she felt it was time to pass the torch.

Raczkowski-Shannon said she was “very close” with her replacement as principal, Sarah Ludwig, who previously worked at Hunt for more than a decade as a teacher and instructional coach.

“I knew I wanted (Ludwig). I just thought she would be a good fit here,” Raczkowski-Shannon said. “It’s easy to retire when you know there’s someone here who can take over the building.” I know what a good person she is, I knew she cares about children and I know she is good with parents.

Mary Jo works seven hours a week as a success coach, and while the new position can be a little lonelier than her last, she welcomes the lighter workload.

“It’s a lot less responsibility and a lot less pressure,” she said. “It’s still very important work – it’s just important in a different way.”

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