You might’ve noticed a new face around campus this semester! Mrs. Blythe Everett joins Moanalua High School as a temporary assignment (TA) administrator. As the school says goodbye and wishes Mr. Wilbert Lum a happy retirement, Everett has stepped into the office to support students and staff. During her time at Moanalua, she is focused on building connections with students, working with teachers, and learning from Principal Martin and Moanalua’s Vice Principals.
Everett is originally from Mount Prospect, Illinois, near Chicago, and has lived in Hawai’i for almost 11 years. She began her education journey at the University of Arizona, where she studied elementary education. She has experience in general education, special education, and English learners. Everett has two masters degrees–one in educational leadership from University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) , and another in special education from University of Hawai’i.
Her original plan was “just teaching.” Everett has taught in Las Vegas, Denver, and Hawai’i, beginning at the elementary level. When she moved to Las Vegas, she helped open charter schools, which required her to take on administrative responsibilities, “ I had to do a lot of administrative tasks and things outside of the classroom, so that kind of sparked my interest,” Everett shared. After that experience, she earned her master’s degree in educational leadership from UNLV (University of Nevada, Las Vegas).
“I kept city hopping. I kind of wanted to be here in the department of education before I started looking at administration,” Everett said. Starting as a classroom teacher and serving as a department head encouraged her to keep learning and improving. “I just like learning. It’s interesting [to see] what’s out there and try new things,” she explained.
Everett’s first official administrative assignment was here at Moanalua. Although she has been teaching for 18 years, she has only been in school administration for about a week at Moanalua so far. Previously, Everett was at the district office for Aiea, Moanalua, and Radford. She was a resource teacher, first for student support, and for the past year and a half she did English learners, where she helped students develop their English skills. She then applied for Hawaii’s administrative program, and when Mr. Lum retired, the opportunity opened for her TA position. She is currently working toward the internship step of the program.
After this semester, Everett may be placed at a middle school or another high school, which would be different from her previous experience in elementary education.
“I want to start out in a vice principal position and then just see from there where that might take me,” Everett said. She added that she’s open to many future paths, whether it’s staying as a vice principal, becoming a principal, working at a state office, or returning to school to earn a doctorate and becoming a professor.
Outside of teaching, Everett enjoys reading, going to the beach, and spending time with her husband and golden retriever, Goose. “My mom’s a school librarian, so I usually always have a book on my Kindle, or one on my nightstand,” Everett expressed.
Everett is excited to be back at Moanalua, where she previously taught at Moanalua Elementary School. “I want to learn all about Moanalua. It has such a good reputation,” Everett said “I just want to meet as many kids as I can.” Her advice to students is to “get the most out of your four years in high school and to enjoy your time here and try new things.”
“My office is here,” Everett exclaimed. “I’d love to meet students that are in my alpha, but if you’re not you can always say hi! I’m just excited to be here.” Mrs. Everett’s alpha list covers students with last names from S to Z. She’s always here for support, so don’t be afraid to go and say hi! Her door is always open, and she looks forward to meeting students throughout the rest of the semester.
