New Middle School Vice Principal Finds Home in North Marion!

By Jillian Daley

North Marion Middle School’s new Vice Principal, Lindsay Androy-Koberstein, did not go into the field of education to follow her parents’ footsteps. In fact, she got into teaching because her parents advised her to find her own path.

“Neither of my parents went to college — and they made it clear to us we were going,” Androy-Koberstein says.

Androy-Koberstein, a teacher from Central Linn School District, started in her new role at North Marion this August simply thrilled to be in a community like the one she grew up in and to continue to honor her parents’ career advice. She says her parents worked hard all her life: Her dad owned and ran restaurants, while her mom worked for the federal government. Androy-Koberstein’s parents encouraged her and her brother to not only attend college but to discover what profession filled them with life. Androy-Koberstein found joy in education and, more specifically, in administration because of positive school experiences growing up in Grants Pass. She chose to apply to North Marion because the community reminded her of her hometown. 

“The school I’m coming from is small and rural like this one,” she says. “I tried to look for schools similar to the one that I grew up in because I like a small community.”

She’s also been looking for an opportunity to transition from teacher to administrator, especially at a school that boasts an Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) Program. AVID is a national college and career program with a site in North Marion and a site at the school where she most recently worked, Central Linn Junior/Senior High School in Halsey, Oregon. At Central Linn, she taught an AVID class and also led AVID curriculum development.

At North Marion, she’s replacing David Sheldon, who was a Co-Principal with Tami Badinger at the Middle School and now works at the Intermediate School. Sheldon replaces former Intermediate School Principal Cory Gaub, who took a job in Montana to be closer to family.

As for newcomer Androy-Koberstein, she says that she likes what she sees here, yet she wants to help the Middle School grow. However, she’s going to approach change with caution.
Androy-Koberstein says that she likes what she sees here, yet she wants to help the Middle School grow. However, she’s going to approach change with caution.

“My first year or two, I don’t plan to come in and change things,” Androy-Koberstein says. “My goal is to learn because education looks different wherever you go. Everyone has their own system, their own culture.”

Her path to North Marion and to education began with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, then a Master of Arts in Teaching, both from Western Oregon University. She spent most of her career at Central Linn. While she was teaching, she was also gaining credentials, finishing two Administrator Licensure Programs and licensure as Principal: Authorization Level PreK–12.

In addition to her strong credentials and her experience teaching in areas including AVID and Language Arts, she also obtained leadership experience while working at the Junior/Senior High School in Central Linn as the:

• AVID District Director (implementing and sustaining AVID curriculum)
• Purpose and Culture Committee member (working with teachers from various departments and School District leaders to further cultural change at school)
• Teaching and Learning Team member (collaborating with her fellow teachers to ascertain staff needs to promote best practices in every classroom)
• Educational Leadership Practicum leader (facilitating meetings, attending walkthroughs, among other duties).

When Androy-Koberstein isn’t leading a team or teaching students, she is spending time with her husband and two children (a third-grader and a sixth-grader) or visiting her husband’s family, who live close to North Marion. To be nearer to their family, Androy-Koberstein hopes to not only work in North Marion but to live closer to this area that is so much like her hometown of Grants Pass. 

She misses her hometown. But she listened to her family’s sound advice to her and her brother to earn a college diploma and find a career they truly loved. That meant she and her brother both had to leave Grants Pass. He attended Harvard for graduate school because he’d found his calling in business. When Androy-Koberstein tried her hand at teaching for the first time, she just knew education was right for her. That’s also how it felt when she came to North Marion, like a perfect fit.

“When I started the application process, North Marion really felt like home,” Androy-Koberstein says. “It just felt very welcoming, inclusive, and accepting, all of the things that I look for in a school.”

She’s now in the kind of place and career that fills her with happiness, just as her parents had always dreamed.

To share stories on the North Marion School District, email Communications Specialist Jillian Daley at jillian.daley@nmarion.k12.or.us.