B-CC’s new principal is familiar face at school

Assistant Principal Karen Lockard takes helm at Bethesda high school

‘‘I live in Bethesda, and my two kids went here, so the position was just perfect,” said Lockard, 53. ‘‘I feel at home here.”

Those involved in her hiring said she was suited for the job even without those qualifications.

‘‘It was pretty clear among the selection committee that she was the most qualified,” said Frank Stetson, community superintendent for the B-CC cluster. ‘‘She’s a very experienced assistant principal and has had great experiences at Blake and B-CC.”

Prior to rejoining the staff at B-CC in 2006, she served as assistant principal at James Hubert Blake High School in Silver Spring for four years.

Stetson said the selection committee, comprised of parents, students and staff, interviewed three applicants for the position, including Lockard.

And while the name on the door may be changing, Lockard said she doesn’t foresee many changes coming to the school. She hopes to continue the work Bulson began with student literacy and incorporating minority students into the fold at the school.

‘‘I want to make sure we’re serving all students,” Lockard said. ‘‘We need to have all African-American and Hispanic students receive the same opportunities as other students.”

Working in school administration wasn’t on Lockard’s radar when she graduated from Pennsylvania’s Susquehanna University in 1977. Her first job was as in English teacher in Harford County, and she took her first position in Montgomery County at North Bethesda Junior High School in 1979.

As a teacher at Blake, however, Lockard had the opportunity to work in an administrative role as Student Support Specialist. That job eventually blossomed into an assistant principal position at the school.

‘‘[As an administrator] I could touch families in a more personal way,” she said. ‘‘My work was more in depth, and I could see changes in students and parents.”

In her 31 years of service in the county, Lockard has worked at Walt Whitman, Springbrook, Blake and B-CC high schools.

Bulson, who took an administrative position as Director of School Performance for the Northwest, Poolesville, Quince Orchard and Seneca Valley clusters, said the school is in good hands.

‘‘No one comes to this school from as many angles as Karen,” he said. ‘‘She has a real sense of ownership that will serve B-CC well.”