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Meet our new principal
David Halloran takes the helm at FFHS

Walk down the halls of Fonda-Fultonville High School and you can’t help but notice our new high school principal, David Halloran. At 6’ 5” he is kind of hard to miss. We thought we might take a brief moment and introduce him as the newest member of our staff. It would take volumes to cover her colorful life, his family, and his visions for our school, but here are a few glimpses...

Background

Mr. Halloran grew up in Northville where he admits to being a “pretty good” basketball player. His skills on the court at Gloversville High School helped open doors to play college ball at SUNY Cortland and SUNY Albany where he earned a teaching degree in Social Studies.

But unlike most other teachers who go straight to teaching after college, Mr. Halloran took a detour.

“My girlfriend, now my wife, wanted to be a naturopathic doctor,” he explains. “Unfortunately, there were only four colleges in the nation where you could study naturopathic medicine.”

So, he packed up his girlfriend and her belongings and took her to Florida. He dropped her off at her sister’s house and while she made her decision, he headed to…Alaska!?!

The Alaskan detour

Mr. Halloran hired on as a hand on a crab fishing boat in the Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska. For two winter seasons, January through March, he and his fellow fisherman fought rogue waves and frigid temperatures in search of Alaskan king and Ophilio crab. Like the crew portrayed on the reality television series “Deadliest Catch,” they worked at the deadliest profession in the world. When asked if the series accurately presented the life of a crab fisherman, he says, “I seldom fished in waters as calm as those on the TV show.”

The rest of the year, he worked installing fiber-optic cable along 400 miles of the Alaskan railroad. After two and a half years in Alaska, he headed down the west coast to Oregon to join his girlfriend who was now attending graduate school. He decided to continue his education at Concordia College where his earned his Masters of Education degree.

Today

Upon returning to the area in 2001, Mr. Halloran taught Social Studies at Tamarac High School, Ballston Spa High School and Brittonkill High School before being named assistant principal at Johnstown High School in August of 2005. In September, the F-F Board of Education unanimously selected him from a deep pool of possible candidates to replace former principal David Ziskin. Mr. Halloran and his wife Joanne live in Gloversville with their children Aidan, Fianna, and Rowan.

On his role as principal

Little did Mr. Halloran realize how his life as a crab fisherman would prepare him for his future career in education. Aboard ship, he often helped his shipmates (a group he refers to as the “frayed ends of society”) cope with broken marriages, drug addiction, and alcoholism. He now shares that real-life experience with students and their parents as they struggle to deal with life’s problems.

“I was able to make a difference in the classroom,” he explains. “As principal, I view my office as an extension of the classroom. I can now make a bigger difference for a larger number of kids.”

His goals

Like anyone in a new job, he is anxious to “get going,” but recognizes the need to spend time getting acquainted with students, parents, and staff.

“I see the high school and the district moving in a positive direction,” he says. “I want to get the pulse of things and then begin to take steps that continue that progress.”

Over the long term, he envisions taking steps that will help the school keep pace with the rapidly changing world. Education must constantly evolve if it is going to effectively prepare our children for the future.

“We can never accept the status quo,” he adds.

The longer you speak with him, the more you realize that he is not talking so much about buildings, equipment, or class curriculum—but rather, he is talking about people.

“I want to reinvigorate the staff,” he explains.

“On 9/11, 343 firefighters rushed into the Twin Towers to save those trapped in the buildings. They didn’t do that because it is a job; they did it because firefighting is a calling.”

He sees a striking similarity to teaching.

“Teaching, like firefighting, is civil service,” he says. “There is no reason that we should not think of education as a calling.

“As teachers, we must be excellent. Excellence must be the standard. As teachers, we should celebrate our profession.”

And excellence is not limited to teachers. He views everyone from custodians and aides to teachers and administrators as part of a team. And the goal on this team is to “keep kids number one.”

If you happen to run into Mr. Halloran, be certain to welcome him.



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