Meet the new Head Principal of Valparaiso High School, Reid A. Amones. He is a genial sort with a relaxed and confident disposition.
Amones grew up in Wabash, Indiana and attended Northfield Junior-Senior High School. In the fall of 1997, Amones and his wife moved to Valparaiso after both of them secured jobs in Portage.
“I contacted a guy who I was going to coach with and asked, 'Where do people live when they work in Portage?'” Amones said with a laugh.
Amones and his wife had a dog, so the deciding factor for them was finding an apartment that allowed animals. There was one in Portage and one in Valparaiso. They decided to come to Valparaiso. That was 15 years ago.
“We fell in love with the community,” Amones said, “It's a nice place to live and we enjoyed the schools.”
Since that time Amones taught math at Portage High School for seven years, followed by two years as the assistant principal at Willowcreek Middle School. Then, he was the Head Principal at George Rogers Clark Middle/High School in Hammond. Amones came to VHS a year ago and took on the position of Assistant Principal. One month ago he became the Head Principal.
Amones has quite a bit on his plate. He oversees every aspect of the school, but some of his main responsibilities are building decisions as far as curriculum, hiring, dual credit programs and supervising the athletic department.
“With great power comes great responsibility,” the wise words of Uncle Ben come to mind.
Amones also spoke his involvement outside of the school. He is on the board of directors of the Valparaiso Community Schools Foundation, he does many things with his church and Amones tries to make it to as many of the school's events as possible.
“The students do a lot of the outreach programs for the community. I have always wanted to give students the opportunity to let them do what they want to do, and with a school this size, we're able to provide those opportunities. We have the resources,” Amones said with a smile.
When he isn't working, Amones likes to golf, go fishing with his kids and be involved with anything dealing with athletics. His daughters are involved in competitive dance and attend the United Dance Arts Studio in Valparaiso.
When asked what the best piece of advice he could give someone looking to make a positive impact, Amones sagely replied with The Three Rules of Life coined by retired Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz: “Do what is right, treat others as you wish to be treated, and do your best all the time.”
To find out more about Reid Amones or any information about Valparaiso Community Schools, visit the schools' website.