Aliso Niguel High School Principal Leaving After a Decade

After a decade at the helm of , principal is leaving.

He sent out a letter to parents and students via the district's Listserve Sunday evening. Here is the announcement in its entirety.

Dear Aliso Niguel High School Community,

I entered this school year with the realization that I would achieve a goal that I made when my son, Philip, began middle school. The goal was to remain the principal at Aliso Niguel until he graduated from high school. Well, Philip has graduated and is on his way to college. This past school year at Aliso is my last.  I am not moving to Texas or Oklahoma as rumor has had it, nor am I retiring because I am too young. I will remain in the school district continuing to strive to meet the needs of students, and I look enthusiastically to the future..

 You and I have had a very special relationship over the last ten years. A relationship that very few high school principals can say they have enjoyed. We communicated frequently and developed a bond that helped us in guiding our children. Many schools have modeled themselves after us in a variety ways. We were very much a family in so many aspects. We enjoyed so many good times together and persevered through difficult ones. Regardless of the political and economic environment, we were able to focus on the main goal of a school which is to provide a sound education for students. I believe we successfully attained that goal. Our children achieved greater heights academically year after year.  We have enjoyed high pass rates on advanced placement tests while continually increasing the number of students participating in them. Their academic performance on the STAR tests continually improved year after year. Student SAT scores continually improved over the years as well. Aliso Niguel’s overall academic performance continues to be recognized at the state and national levels.  An example of this was last week’s Newsweek article, which includes Aliso Niguel at number 217 out of over 24,000 high schools in our country. (Yes, I still hate rankings.) We were able to attain this because we worked together to help the struggling learners and made the effort to make sure they did not fall through the cracks. We were able to attain this with our Saturday morning Coffeehouse Chats as we often discussed the challenges of the teenage mind. We did this because we tried to stay informed about the ills of our society that negatively impacted our children. We accomplished a great deal together, and it was all with the kids in mind.

What I will miss the most undoubtedly will be our students, our children, our young men and women. I loved greatly loved working with them. My goal was always to help them to be better than they thought they could be. I loved pushing and challenging them to be better people, better citizens, and better human beings.  My desire for them was to have high standards for themselves in all that they undertook. I loved watching them perform in athletics, the arts, or academic competitions. During the years, there has been tremendous success in each of those arenas. I have been fortunate to be present during great moments for our kids such as sports championships, musical sweepstakes championships, academic competition and theatre festival successes to name a few. I was always elated and reveled in their success.

Most of all I will just miss watching our students and watching over them, the way first time parents watch their new-born baby in amazement as their pride and joy peacefully sleeps. I loved working with our parents and local governments to provide students with the best environment possible to enhance their learning. I am sure that you will provide the new principal with the same kind of support that I have enjoyed over the years.

Please enjoy your summer with your families. I will be spending most of my summer with my father. As I grew up, he was the rock of our family. He was always there and very reliable. He was firm but fair, and demanding yet understanding. I hope that as I leave Aliso, you will have found me to have been the same.

It has been my pleasure to serve you. You will always have a fond place in my heart.

Always your friendly neighborhood principal,

Charles Salter