Holmes principal honored

Steve Barnes thought he was going to a routine meeting Tuesday morning, but instead was greeted by a group of photographers and a room full of enthusiastic applause.

Barnes, principal at Holmes Elementary, was being awarded the Dick Stannard Distinguished Elementary Principal of the Year for Spokane Public Schools.

The award was presented by Joann Ekstrom, president of Spokane Elementary Principals Association on behalf of the district’s 38 elementary principals.

“I was totally surprised. It’s hard to do – to keep surprises around here,” said Barnes. He hugged his wife, Peggy, and daughter Brittney, who were there for the presentation, along with his mom, Jeanette, and sister Jenna and her husband. His son Brandon would have been there but he was busy studying for finals at Washington State University.

“To me the highest compliment you can receive is an award from your peers. They’re the ones that are in the trenches with you and they know the work you do day in and day out. To see that they honor and value the work that I do is incredible,” said Barnes.

Christie Querna, Spokane School Board vice president thanked Barnes for his leadership. “I was telling Steve’s mom that he really leads with his heart. You can’t go wrong when you lead with your heart.”

Superintendent Brian Benzel, described him as an advocate of children, teachers and the community. Benzel told the group of family, friends and staff that Barnes was a model not only for Spokane but for the state and the country as well.

Barnes will be publicly honored at the January school board meeting and will now be considered for the Washington State Principal of the Year Award.

When Barnes took over as principal at Holmes in 2004 he said his goal was to improve student learning and they have made huge gains already.

On the 2005 WASL, 61 percent of Holmes students met the math standard, up from 28 percent in 2004; 76 percent met the reading standard, up from 44 percent; and 33 percent met the writing standard, up from 28 percent.

“It was flat-out incredible. There was a mountain of nominations for Mr. Barnes. Definitely the WASL scores played a big part in us noticing Steve. Holmes went up over 30 points in reading and math in his very first year as a principal,” said Ekstrom.

Ekstrom, principal at Garfield, said that she’s worked with Barnes because they are part of the West Central neighborhood.

“He and his assistant Julia Lockwood are both determined, hard workers, and they both just believed that those kids could do it. They empowered the staff to believe that too,” said Ekstrom.

This is the third time Barnes, 45, has been at Holmes. His career began at Holmes as a teacher in the fall of 1983, and then as a principal assistant from 1996 to 1999.

Barnes has worked in schools throughout the district, including Browne, Bemiss and Pratt, where he served as principal for five years before moving to Holmes.

Those who honored Barnes called him an “instructional leader.” What does that mean to him?

“It means that you understand how kids learn. I guess that’s what I pride myself in. Learning how to challenge kids on a regular basis – to have them love learning so you don’t have to wear funny hats, you don’t have to juggle, you don’t have to wear a clown suit to keep the kids attention. You do it by teaching.”

Barnes admits that Holmes students have challenges to overcome. Many of the students are transient. During the 2003-04 school year, 173 of Holmes’ 465 students transferred into the school and 156 students transferred out. These numbers represent a mobility index of 71 percent, the highest in Spokane Public Schools.

Poverty is another issue, with 93 percent of the students qualifying for free or reduced-priced meals.

“We have lots of challenges, but it’s not an excuse for why kids can’t learn. We have the same expectations as any other kids in the district and across the state of Washington.

“But what I see, with all these challenges, is that there are people here who are dedicated and passionate. It’s wild and crazy, and it’s busy, and it’s hectic, but once you’re in the door you’re in this zone, and you just buzz, buzz, buzz,” said Barnes.