By Alfredo Curiel
Hugo High School
Student Reporter

I had the opportunity to interview one of the newest members of Hugo City School District, principal of the Hugo Middle School, Glen Martin. I asked Martin the following questions.

Q: First things first, where was your last place of employment?
A: “Railand School District, but I spent most of my career working at North Lamar.”
Q: How is Railand different from the Hugo school district?
A: “We have a bigger challenge here getting test scores where they need to be; also, we have more minority students here.”
Q: What new ideas are you bringing to Hugo?
A: “To make sure to develop student self esteem, to be successful and establish more remedial programs to get students to grade level.”

At this point I really didn’t feel like I was interviewing the principal, but just talking to a friend.  He was very relaxed, yet composed, and I didn’t feel nervous talking to him.

Q: So what do you think about the faculty and staff?
A: “We have a great faculty and staff. They are positive about the school and want the students to succeed.”
Q: How has the student body reacted to you so far?
A: “It has been really positive. We have established some guidelines and rules, and they have been very accepting.”
Q: What other hobbies and interests do you have outside of being a principal?
A: “Some hobbies of mine are OSU football, weightlifting and spending time with my family and kids.”
Q: How do you plan on improving the communication gap between the schools and the community?
A: “By establishing communication through parent-teacher conferences, making sure it is communicated in our local newspapers and making ourselves available to the parents.”

Overall, Martin was an easygoing guy who really opened up in the interview. I was really impressed by the way he communicated with me, not as a student, but as an equal. I can’t wait to see what this educator has in store for Hugo Middle School.