ALANA FAURÉ
Gives Thanks to Her Predecessors
Though she’s in her first year as principal of Huntington Middle School, Alana Fauré is no stranger to serving the San Marino Unified School district. She has been with the district for 28 years and is looking to keep HMS strong into the future, working hand-in-hand with first-year Assistant Principal Rick Barclay.
Fauré got her start with the district in 1990 as an ESL (English as a Second Language) assistant. In her first year, she taught at both HMS and Carver Elementary Schools, working alongside the teachers as they helped students learn English. She then went on to teach third grade at Carver for 18 years before becoming assistant principal for both Valentine and Carver Elementary Schools. She said it was a valuable education for her, working with two sites, faculty groups and student bodies during her time as assistant principal.
“It was an incredible experience and I feel like, unbeknownst to me, [it] laid the perfect foundation to transition into administration at the middle school,” said Fauré.
From there, Fauré moved on to HMS, serving as assistant principal for two years before becoming principal last year. She shared that the transition has been “remarkably smooth.”
“I’ve been so impressed with our students and this age group,” said Fauré. “We have kids who really want to be a part of the conversation. They’re still having fun in life, but they’re also working very hard and all their capabilities and talents are just beginning to shine.”
Fauré said she feels delighted to have Barclay serving alongside her at the school, saluting his experience as both a teacher and student body guide.
“I feel really fortunate to have such an experienced assistant principal because he just hit the ground running,” said Fauré.
Fauré admires Barclay’s approach to discipline with respect to supporting the social and emotional aspect of students. In his first few months, she shared that he took the entire student body, one grade at a time, for five-day outdoor excursion education trips to Catalina Island, the San Bernardino Mountains and the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
“He did a remarkable job navigating all those logistics in his first month or two on the job which was a great test of his ability and he came through with flying colors,” said Fauré. “I’ve just been delighted to have him on board.”
She also noted that her two predecessors as HMS principals, Jason Kurtenbach and Dr. Gary McGuigan, have served as important mentors, with Kurtenbach helping her to understand the middle school psyche and dynamics and McGuigan providing insight on master scheduling. She credited the faculty at HMS and said they’re been a major part of making the first semester a success for the school.
“I’m fortunate to have an incredible faculty, a very dedicated and hardworking faculty, very experienced master teachers and front office staff that have really made the transition seamless,” said Fauré.
Looking forward to the future with HMS, Fauré feels that she has an “honor and privilege to steward this incredible learning community.”
“Huntington Middle School has deep traditions and the community has supported this school for many, many years, decades and decades,” said Fauré. “We have kids returning whose parents went here. To be at the helm of such a noteworthy institution, I feel very honored and I want to keep that going and keep it strong for the future.”
