Passion, vision and results. That combination, directed at the goal of meeting the basic needs of students, has helped Milwaukie High School’s Michael Ralls earn the selection as Assistant Principal of the Year, from the Oregon Association of Secondary School Administrators (OASSA) and the Confederation of Oregon School Administrators (COSA).

As part of his nomination of Ralls, Milwaukie High Principal Mark Pinder cited Ralls as key to the upward trajectory in student achievement at Milwaukie High School in the past five years. During that time, the school has twice been named "Outstanding" by the Oregon Department of Education, and was presented with the Vision in Action: The ASCD Whole Child Award, a rare national honor. 

From his first day, Ralls’s passion has been about meeting the basic needs of each child, Pinder said. Beyond helping each child succeed in the classroom through the use of best practices, the student should feel safe, be healthy and supported. Through developing partnerships and forming alliances with a wide variety of people and organizations, Ralls has helped bring more support for students.

Ralls's vision reached a higher level with the opening of a health center a year ago on the campus. A four-year campaign of hard work and partnering with staff, students, community groups and health organizations brought the center to fruition.

"This is truly an honor," Ralls said. "I'm proud to be an educator and this recognition validates the hard work that school administrators do daily to positively impact kids' lives. I am blessed to work with a team that trusts and supports me, and to work with teachers and staff who care daily about doing what's best for kids."

The improvements in literacy at the school came after Ralls worked with language arts teachers to improve reading and writing scores.  The algebra program has been realigned to help more students reach proficient levels.  Further, Ralls worked to improve attendance by studying how other schools with similar demographics increased attendance.

With this selection, OASSA will nominate Ralls for the national title of Assistant Principal of the Year.

Ralls will be honored at the annual COSA Seaside Conference in June.  He will attend the National Assistant Principals Forum and awards dinner in Washington D.C. sponsored by the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) and VIRCO, Inc., later this year.

About COSA and OASSA

The Confederation of Oregon School Administrators (COSA) serves and represents more than 2,000 school administrators, managers and executives.  COSA was founded in 1974 to give Oregon's education leaders a united voice in helping to shape public policy, advocate for schools and speak on behalf of students. In addition to advocacy, COSA supports and develops educational leaders with professional development opportunities -- including statewide conferences, regional seminars and workshops, and much more -- and a number of exclusive member services. Areas of focus include school finance and legislative services. A member-driven umbrella organization, COSA is governed by an elected Board of Directors that represents the organization's four Departments: the Oregon Association of School Executives (OASE), the Oregon Association of Secondary School Administrators (OASSA), the Oregon Elementary School Principals Association (OESPA) and the Oregon Association of Central Office Administrators (OACOA).

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