Meet the New Principals at District 15 Schools

Photo caption: (From left to right): Jennifer Seoane is the new principal at Lake Louise School, Rachel Bland is the new principal at Stuart Paddock School and Christie Samojedny is the new principal at Jane Addams School.

There will be three new principals at District 15 schools this year.

Jennifer Seoane was named as the new principal at Lake Louise School, 500 N. Jonathon Drive in Palatine. Prior to her promotion, she was the assistant principal at Lake Louise School for the past three years.

Seone joined the District in 2012 after serving as an assistant principal intern at Lincoln School.

Prior to that, she served for almost seven years as a fifth grade gifted bilingual teacher in Elgin Area School District U-46 before leaving for several years to raise her family and further pursue her education.

She has also served at Purdue University for three years as a teaching assistant and teacher leader, and in Washington’s Tumwater School District for three years as a third- and fourth-grade teacher.

Seoane holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Whitman College. She also attended a master’s degree program in elementary science education at Purdue University, and received a master’s degree in educational leadership and supervision from National Louis University.

Christie Samojedny has been named the new principal at Jane Addams School, 1020 E Sayles Drive. She was the former principal at Stuart R. Paddock School for four years .She will take the place of Monica Petersen who has accepted a principal position in Crystal Lake Elementary District 47.

Photo Caption: Christie Samojedny

Samojedny’s position at Paddock will be filled by Rachel Bland who has served as the assistant principal at Gray M. Sanborn School for the past two years.

Photo Caption: Rachel Bland

Christie Samojedny

Samojedny joined District 15 in August 1999, and served as a third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade teacher at Virginia Lake School before becoming Lincoln School’s principal in July 2007. She served in that capacity for four years before accepting her current principal position at Paddock. Prior to joining the District, Mrs. Samojedny served as a fourth-grade teacher at J. Milton Lewis School in Kennesaw, Georgia.

“Throughout her career as both a teacher and an administrator, Christie has distinguished herself as gifted educational leader,” said Scott Thompson, Ed.D., superintendent of schools. “She has experienced tremendous success while serving as principal at two similar schools in the District, and we’re confident she will continue to accomplish great things while working with the Jane Addams community.”

Samojedny holds a bachelor’s degree in education from Brenau University in Gainesville, Georgia, and a master’s degree in educational administration, leadership, psychology, and foundations from Northern Illinois University. She is currently enrolled in a doctoral program in curriculum and instruction at Aurora University.

Rachel Bland

Bland joined District 15 in 2005, and served for a year as the assistant principal for both Sanborn and Willow Bend Schools, splitting her time between the two buildings.

In 2006, she was named the full-time assistant principal at Willow Bend, and she held that position for seven years before moving to Sanborn to serve as its assistant principal in 2013. Prior to joining District 15, Bland served for four years within the Low Incidence Cooperative Agreement as an elementary special education teacher working with students who were deaf or hard of hearing.

“Rachel is a child-centered educator who has excelled in two different assistant principal positions in large part because she is so adept at building relationships with staff, students, and parents,” said Dr. Thompson. “She has proven that she will be an outstanding principal at Paddock, and we’re proud to extend this opportunity to her.”

Bland holds a bachelor’s degree in special education for the deaf and hard of hearing from Illinois State University, and a master’s degree in educational leadership from National Louis University.

In addition, Matt Warren has been named the new principal at Winston Campus Junior High.

Source: District 15 press releses