Head principal Gayle Kimbrough is entering her ninth year as a principal for the Plain Local Schools and has been with Plain Local School since 1998. 

She started her career as an English teacher at GlenOak, and in the fall of 2008, she became a guidance counselor.  In 2015, she moved to curriculum before becoming deputy principal in 2016.  She was named head principal of the building in 2021.

Kimbrough started her teaching degree at Kent State University but finished at Ohio University.

“I did start at Kent State but that was not quite what I was looking for and I may transfer to Ohio University and finish my degree,” Kimbrough said.

If she had to go back to one of her previous jobs in her whole life, Kimbrough would go back to working at Camp Tippecanoe. Kimbrough was a camp counselor during the summer camp. She taught horseback riding during her time there.  

One of the most interesting things to happen in the classroom to Kimbrough was when a student had a surprise in his book bag.

“And he unzipped his bag and inside of his bag were five dotson puppies. And he brought them in so we could see them in class,” Kimbrough said.

Kimbrough admits that the students did get to visit with the puppies.

Pickering is entering her third year as assistant principal at GlenOak High School, having taught for 16 years. 

Pickering’s job experience has been as a grad assistant at Merdian College for volleyball, an intervention specialist, and a behavior intervention specialist that writes  IEPs for students, and behavioral plans and did small group instructions. 

Pickering’s motivation to become principal was she wanted some type of leadership and to meet many students and families. Pickering wanted to become an assistant principal of GlenOak High School to impact the positive student body. 

“I think that students need that positive impact from that role,” Pickering said.

Pickering also said she worked under great principals in the past which motivated her to apply as a principal of GlenOak High School.  

There is one thing that Pickering misses that her role as principal does not allow; Pickering had to give up her volleyball coach role for the varsity volleyball team. Pickering had been coaching since she was 18 years old.

“So I was sad when I had, to you know, kind of step down but I still get to be a part of all of their (stuff),” Pickering said.

According to Pickering, varsity coaching took a lot of time and she did not have the time to be principal and be a varsity coach.  

Brett Niarchos has been the principal for 15 years and went to Ohio University. Niarchos started as a special ed tutor at Taft Middle School which now is Taft Elementary School. 

Niarchos moved to Passages for a year to become a social studies teacher. The following year, Niarchos returned to Plain Local becoming a United States History Teacher for 10th grade and had that job for six years. Afterward, Niarchos’s first administration role was to become freshman principal. His motivation was to get outside of the classroom and lead a building and to have a bigger impact on the students and the community itself. 

If he could back to one of his past jobs, Niarchos would go lifeguard at Clearwater Park in Hartville because it was fun. 

“I did that in high school because it was fun, and I got a tan,” Niarchos said.

Niarchos was also a head varsity soccer coach for three years and a coach for track for five years.