John Marshall High School will be seeing change next month as Centennial High School closed in May. It’s students will be relocating to John Marshall High School. What a better fit to have former Centennial Assistant Principal, Jeanne Ambriz, come in as the new principal at John Marshall. She will be replacing Erica Ajayi, who took an administrative position at Yukon High School.
“It’s going to be a wild transition,” Ambriz said. “Not in a bad way, just a whole lot of new. I want the transition to be as seamless as possible.”.
Ambriz, who was officially approved June 24 by the school board, said John Marshall has been hosting welcoming activities for the Centennial students. The Centennial students shadowed John Marshall students, sat in classes, ate lunch in the cafeteria and walked the halls in between class with a JM student sponsor. The JM cheerleaders were the welcoming committee along with student council members to start the day off.
“The biggest challenge will definitely be the merging of the two schools, creating a culture and a staff to do the difficult work to truly make a difference,” Jeanne said. “They’ll never grow as educators if they don’t go out of their comfort zones. I truly want John Marshall to be the top school in the Oklahoma City district.”.
Ambriz, 37, was a teacher from 2010-17 and an assistant principal the past two years. She began her teaching career in San Diego, where she resided for the initial 32 years of her life.
“My parents moved to Oklahoma, so I have family out here.” Ambriz said. “I’ve always had a great time coming out here.”
Tragically in 2011, Jeanne’s parents lost their home in a tornado.“People we didn’t even know offered a rental house that was vacant.”.
The people in Oklahoma and the bond she builds with students are a big part in why Ambriz is an Oklahoman.
“Many days I miss the classroom,” she noted. “I had much more direct impact as a teacher but now my reach is far greater as an administrator. I’m huge on teachers working collaboratively and being transparent. I want to put systems in place to keep students from falling through the gaps."
"I’m extremely excited and I’ve always been one to take on huge tasks, even as a little kid. I love a challenge and I have a real rapport with people.” Amdriz adds.
Welcome, Jeanne Ambriz, John Marshall Principal.
