P.A. Walsh Elementary School Principal Natalie Gioco paused
during Walsh and Burnett Elementary School’s joint Field Day to
speak to a student who overheard a Burnett student badmouthing
Walsh.
P.A. Walsh Elementary School Principal Natalie Gioco paused during Walsh and Burnett Elementary School’s joint Field Day to speak to a student who overheard a Burnett student badmouthing Walsh.
In January, the Morgan Hill Unified School District Board of Trustees, faced with a drastic deficit, voted to close Burnett and move the more than 300 students to Walsh next year. The closure will save the district $400,000 a year.
“I think some Burnett students are worried about the change. We’re going to be very understanding about it. We’re just going to be patient with them,” Gioco explained to the girl.
It’s this assured, collected demeanor that characterizes the young, ambitious principal.
Gioco, 33, stood calmly in the center of the organized bedlam Wednesday, looking on as her old and new students crowded the blacktop and grassy meadow behind Walsh, playing water games and mingling with their new classmates. This was the first complete gathering of the nearly 700 students.
Gioco insisted she wasn’t nervous about her student body doubling – she’s excited.
“I don’t feel we’re plagued by anything. The challenge was arriving at the decision. The worst is behind us,” she said.
Gioco said she was happy to get back to the school size she was used to at southeast San Jose’s Evergreen School District, where she taught and served as assistant principal before arriving in Morgan Hill as Walsh’s principal in 2006. A San Jose native, she’s also a product of Evergreen, and graduated from San Jose State University.
While some argue that students can get lost in the shuffle of a larger campus, Gioco sees a large student body as a positive: teachers can share resources, and there’s a critical mass for more programs.
Walsh will have a similar demographic as the schools Gioco is used to: a high low-income population, multicultural, with about 700 kids.
“The different piece in Morgan Hill is that it’s a tight knit community,” Gioco said, adding that this element will make for a smoother transition than, say, Oakland would experience under similar circumstances.
Many Burnett and Walsh parents are Morgan Hill natives who graduated from Live Oak High School together, she said, and the students have cousins and friends who attend the other school.
Gioco said the aim was to ease into the change by introducing Burnett students, parents and teachers to the new campus while still allowing them room to find closure at the old site.
Already, Walsh has hosted an open house for Burnett parents and students to attend. Both staffs have met to familiarize themselves with the new school.
Gioco’s collaborative spirit makes her well-respected by her peers, both old and new.
“(Gioco) is very positive, very organized and easygoing. She’s been good at making everyone feel equal. She puts everyone on the same playing field,” Burnett teacher Agnes Davis said.
First grade teacher Janet Fruit said that when the district transferred her to Walsh two years ago, Gioco was very supportive.
“She not only encouraged other teachers to support me, but she put up my bulletin board. Not everyone does that,” Fruit said.
Superintendent Alan Nishino said the district was lucky to have a leader like Gioco in place during this time.
“We’re expecting really great things out of Natalie,” Nishino said. “She’ll do very well. She’s well-organized, focused and believes in getting input and collaborating, but she never takes her eye off the ball.”
Gioco said she’s always been a planner. Especially inspired by her fifth grade teacher Randy Mitchell, Gioco said she knew early on that she wanted to work in education and always planned to move into administration.
“It’s just what you know you’re meant to do,” she said.
Burnett and Walsh students agreed that Gioco is a good principal.
“She’s gonna be a nice principal,” Burnett fourth grader Bryan Campos said.
