Cheboygan principal retiring after 30 years in district
CHEBOYGAN — Nancy Spray, Cheboygan High School principal, always loved school.
Originally from Cheboygan, Spray graduated from Cheboygan Area Schools before heading to Central Michigan University.
She wasn’t sure if she wanted to go pre-med or go into education, but her love for school helped her make the choice. Then, after a short stint in Sault Ste. Marie as a middle school math and science teacher, Spray found herself accepting a job right back where she fell in love with school.
She joined the Cheboygan High School teaching staff in 1994, and she stayed with the district throughout her entire career, where she will be retiring from at the end of the school year. Spray's retirement was approved during the February school board meeting.
“It was great being able to come back here and give back,” Spray said. “It was surreal the whole time. I don't think a lot of people get to experience that, where they go back to the district where they spent their entire career as a student.”
Finding herself back in the same hallways she got her education — working as a peer now with some of her former teachers as well — was a period of adjustment, but one she welcomed.
“I ended up being colleagues with some of my former teachers, and it was different,” Spray said. “They are so welcoming in having you as a colleague and treating you as a professional and recognizing that you belong here, you're one of us. And, coincidentally, I got to do the same thing. I have hired former students of mine to come into my building, and I can see that same thing with them.”
Spray loved teaching, but eventually found herself in a position to make the switch over to administration. She became an assistant principal before starting as the Cheboygan High School principal after the pandemic hit.
Her first year as principal was the 2020-21 school year.
While being able to have a say in the decision-making process was enticing for her, making the choice to leave the classroom was still difficult, Spray said.
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“I enjoy being part of the decision-making and I enjoy just planning and figuring out how to make things work and getting us through difficult situations,” Spray said. "That's right in my wheelhouse ... but you’re just not as close with kids. And that is tough because you go into education because you enjoy working with kids.”
Now with retirement on its way, Spray said she’s looking forward to heading south for milder winters and finding time to go bicycling, painting, trying nature photography and helping with her husband’s business. That said, she’ll still be around in the area, visiting family.
“I am looking forward to just figuring out my path,” Spray said.
— Contact reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on Twitter at @KarlyGrahamJRN.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Cheboygan principal retiring after 30 years in district
