Barbara Butterworth

Interim Principal, 1998

I am a transplanted Easterner who "suffers" from a love affair with three places: Palo Alto, Eastern Long Island, and Nepal. I first came to California in 1975, to attend graduate school at Stanford. In 1979, two years before completing a doctorate in educational administration, I became principal at Keys School, a private school in Palo Alto. Then in 1986, after six wonderful years at Keys, my husband and I decided to head back to Nepal. It was there that I originally began my career as an educator. Inspired by a scientist father and launched by an undergraduate major in Astronomy, I taught science in a village high school as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the mid 60's.

In 1986, I went back to Nepal to work at the national level, helping the Nepali Ministry of Education build and maintain a nationwide education database. Four years of joyful struggle with Nepali bureaucracy convinced us that it was time to come back to the US again. After a brief stint of teaching science education at a college on the East Coast, I was fortunate in finding a job as principal back in Palo Alto, this time at PAUSD's Addison School. Coming back to Palo Alto in 1991, I was doubly fortunate to return just in time to work with the District on developing its elementary science program.

After five years as principal at Addison, itchy feet struck yet again. In the summer of 1996, my family and I, including our 10 year old son, moved to Cambodia. There I directed the program implementation of a large basic primary education project funded by the US Agency for International Development -- a project designed to train all of the primary teachers in the country. But a coup d'etat this last summer led USAID to suspend funding and in September, somewhat unexpectedly, we once again found ourselves back home in Palo Alto.
I am delighted to work with the District again and to have the opportunity to be in on the ground floor of building this new elementary school. At the end of this school year however, my son Peter, husband Mike and I will once again answer Nepal's siren call. In August 1998, we will move back to Kathmandu, where I will become the director and elementary principal of Lincoln School, the K-12 American International School.

In the meantime, I look forward to working with staff and parents to build a school that is the pride of the community.