Larry Penkava
Staff Writer
TABERNACLE —
With eight years as an assistant principal under his belt, Jason Krpejs will take over as principal of Tabernacle Elementary School.
The Randolph County Board of Education last week named him to succeed Jack Blanchard. Krpejs – pronounced “Kerpeez” – comes to the area from Kernersville Elementary School, where he has served as assistant principal since 2004.
Prior to that he was AP at Randleman Middle School.
His resumé includes stints as a classroom teacher beginning at Thomasville Middle School in 1995 and continuing with Southwestern Randolph Middle, Atkins Middle and Meadowlark Middle.
He has a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Greensboro College and a master’s in school administration from UNC-Greensboro.
Krpejs is originally from Maryland and has two sons – Max, 10, and Bradley, 6.
Asked about coming to Tabernacle, Krpejs said, “It’s a good school. The community is closeknit. I’m looking forward to the opportunity.”
Krpejs sees his role as making sure the faculty and staff have what they need. “The bottom line is the students, to make sure they’re successful,” he said.
Coming from a much larger school in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, Krpejs said the smaller enrollment at Tabernacle will allow him to “get to know the students more closely. I like the small school setting.”
At the age of 37, Krpejs said he’s “right where I want to be. I’ve been an assistant principal. I feel I’m ready” to be principal.
During his career in education, Krpejs said he’s “had quality leaders.”
He named Barry Cole, Tim Setzer and Cathy Brady at Southwestern Randolph Middle, Dana Johnson at Randleman Middle and David Fitzpatrick of WS/FC Schools.
“All of them have been instrumental in my career,” he said.
As for Krpejs’s educational philosophical, he states it simply: “All students can learn but not at the same rate. Students don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.
“You have to show interest in the individual as much as possible,” he said. “Students come first. They are our clients.”
Krpejs will take over his duties at Tabernacle by Aug. 3.
Blanchard, who has been at Tabernacle for several years, is being reassigned to Archdale-Trinity Middle School as a science teacher and athletic director, according to Superintendent Donald Andrews.
Andrews said Blanchard had decided he “wanted to go back to the classroom.”
