Murmurs of uncertainty and excitement linger in the halls of Cosumnes Oaks High School as new principal Zachary Cheney takes charge. 

In an interview Cheney recently reflected on his past experiences and shared how they influenced his professional career as well as discussing his short and long-term aspirations.

Cheney’s journey in education began as an English teacher at Lodi High School and an adjunct faculty member at San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton. At this point in his career, he taught teenagers during the day and young adults at night, forming a fundamental understanding of education. 

“If they want to learn, and they’re ready to learn, all I have to do is teach,” he said. “From the purest sense of the word … that’s teaching. It’s a very different experience (from being a principal), but I’ve enjoyed both of them very much.”

Cheney’s introduction to administration began in 2012 when he spent a year serving as an assistant principal at Toby Johnson Middle School in Elk Grove.  After a year at Toby Johnson, he became principal at Joseph Kerr Middle School, also in Elk Grove, for a decade. He said his experience in middle school and community college gives him a distinct advantage as a high school principal. 

“I’m now uniquely positioned in some ways to be able to see the veil, to understand the educational experience from a teacher’s perspective,” Cheney said.

He takes pride in the empathy he has developed over the years, and in his relationship-building skills. 

“My greatest strength is my ability to connect with people,” Cheney said. “Yet at the end of the day, intelligence matters but what matters most – because we’re dealing with human beings – is your ability to understand what people need.”

Cheney said he tries to focus on the needs of students and staff. 

“I spend a lot of time just trying to cheerlead them, trying to support them, trying to prop them up and say, ‘You got this. You can do this,’ ” he said.

Riley Sanger, a graduate of Joseph Kerr and a current senior at Cosumnes Oaks, said Cheney is true to his word.

“He really valued making connections on campus,” Sanger said. “He was a great principal. I never had any issues with him, none of the teachers had an issue with him. He was genuinely just a good person.”

Cheney talked about the three-part plan he wants to implement at Cosumnes Oaks.  

“Focus one is the academic focus, which is PLC. Professional Learning Communities,” Cheney said. “Focus one is making sure that our staff is engaged with reviewing student data. Why did this class achieve a higher level on the same task that we created together as a team? Why are some achieving at a higher level?” 

The second part of Cheney’s plan entails a system familiar to Cosumnes Oaks students – PBIS, Positive Behavior Intervention and Support. But he wants to emphasize it even more.

“It’s relationship building, building a sense of community, creating a school where people feel like they’re a part of something,” he said. “In addition to rewarding kids, PBIS responds to students.”

Cosumnes Oaks ASB President Meka Rucker and Vice President Lorraine Bambalan work year-round to create a welcoming community on campus. They had some thoughts for the new principal.

“Communication and transparency. Foster a deep connection with our administration, our associated student body, and our student population in general,” Rucker said. 

Bambalan added, “Have outside opinions. We’re supposed to represent all the school demographics. Have communication outside of the campus and inside the classroom.”

The third part of Cheney’s plan is also his long-term goal at the high school. He wants the school community to go beyond the surface to find a deeper meaning, both on campus and beyond.

“There are signs all over campus that say ‘I am CO,’ ” he said. “ But my question is, ‘Who is Cosumnes Oaks as an entity? What are we, what do we stand for as a school community?’ That’s a hard thing to define.”