With school officially back in session, students may notice there’s a new face in the halls of Perry Elementary.

Ryan Marzen is the new assistant principal at the school, who arrives after spending the last five years teaching first grade at Denison-Schleswig Elementary. He says the district he left has a very similar demographic to Perry, and when the assistant principal position opened up he knew it would be a great fit for him. Because of the similarity in the school and the curriculum, Marzen feels the transition has been a very smooth one for him, though he admits he’s still learning on the job.

To aid that transition, he says Principal Ned Menke has been extraordinarily helpful so far, as have the teachers and staff. That sort of rapport is precisely what Marzen is hoping to foster early on in his time in Perry, as he explains, “You know, relationships are very important to me. That’s probably my highest on my list of priorities. Just getting relationships with teachers and community members here in Perry Elementary. To be able to move forward with any ideas that I have, or any ideas that I want to implement, you have to have that working relationship. And you know, that’s in and outside of the classroom. They have to be able to trust you, they have to be able to put faith in you.”

Marzen adds, his number one goal for this year is to learn the names of every student at the elementary. In a building of more than 700 kids, he realizes that will be a daunting task, but he’s confident he’ll pull it off. To hear more about Marzen, listen to today’s Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County program at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.