KINGSTON — The North Kitsap School District didn’t have to look far to find its newest administrator, choosing Suquamish Elementary counselor Jackie Finckler as the assistant principal position at Spectrum Community School and Kingston High School.

“I am excited. I think it combines a number of my strengths,” Finckler said. “I am looking forward to it.”

She will be top administrator at Spectrum considering it won’t have a principal when the 2007-08 school year begins.

Chris Wendelyn, who’s been the Spectrum Community School’s principal for 22 years, will reportedly be reassigned within the district next school year.

“The district decided they were going to change the administration alignment of Spectrum,” he said.

Wendelyn still doesn’t know where he will be stationed, or at what capacity in the fall.

“As of now, I don’t have a firm answer of where I will be next year,” he said.

With a long history in the NKSD, Finckler is another story. She’s worked at the district for 16 years, the past nine of which she’s served as a counselor at Suquamish Elementary.

“Over the years as a counselor one of my strengths is that I have worked with a diversity of people in that time,” she said. “I know students need a lot of different options to succeed so they can do their best in school.”

The job will be a challenging one for Finckler, considering she will be the assistant principal at two schools.

“It’s going to be a challenge wearing both hats,” she admitted. “My primary placement will be at Spectrum, I will be working with the Spectrum staff as well as working in collaboration with KHS principal Christy Cole and the administrative team at KHS.”

Finckler said she’s looking forward to assisting students at both.

“Working with students is the most enjoyable part of being in education,” she said. “I have spent some time already talking with Spectrum students. They have some very thoughtful ideas and clear ideas of things they want to do. We need to do work as much as we can to do what’s best for our students.”

Spectrum is projected to have about 100 students enrolled during the 2007-08 school year.

“It’s a much smaller school than most of the schools in the district,” Finckler said. “I really like the relationship and sense of family the staff has with the school. We get a chance to focus on each individual student.”

Finckler, who’s lived in the North Kitsap area for the last 25 years, plans on staying at Spectrum and KHS for the long haul.

“I own a home in the area and am pretty well rooted here,” she said. “My goal is to help find a vision for the school community and help them get there. We need to help those kids by finding a educational pathway to help support them so they can be successful. We need to individualize students needs.”

Although Finckler’s job duties don’t begin until the 2007-08 school year, she said she’s received a warm welcome from staff members throughout the NKSD community.

“I have already received e-mails and phone calls welcoming me to both of the schools,” she said. “It’s just been great.”