Even though he’s still adjusting to his new office, new MTHS assistant principal Peter Schurke has already begun to fill the room with his humor and humble approach.
Schurke, 40, was previously a science teacher for 11 years at Ingraham H.S. in Seattle. When the MTHS assistant principal vacancy was posted in June, after former assistant principal Erin Murphy was hired as principal at Alderwood M.S., it caught his eye immediately.
“As soon as I saw it, I was all over it like a hungry man on a steak dinner because there is something special about this school,” Schurke said. “If there was ever going to be an opening here. This was the place I wanted to be.”
He has a background in chemistry and aerospace engineering, the latter of which he used to run the successful rocketry program at Ingraham.
He proudly admits to being a “math and science geek.” Schurke’s spare time is usually spent either building rockets or playing with his kids.
Schurke lives in the area with his wife and two sons, who are four months old and five years old. A major reason why he was the job was appealing was that his sons will eventually attend MTHS in the future. Although that is still years away, Schurke is looking forward towards stepping into his new administrative role.
“I’m looking forward to learning the whole culture of Mountlake Terrace and figuring how I fit in to that culture,” he said. “As far as changes, I really can’t start thinking about changes until I understand everything that I need to under stand about this place.”
Though Schurke has a certain passion for math and science, his past experience in the Danforth Educational Leadership Program at the University of Washington will greatly help him.
“This whole opportunity is a huge gift and I am going to treat it as such,” Schurke said. “It’s an honor to step into this role and serve this school but I’ve got a lot to learn.”
Once people get to know him better, they’ll also get a healthy dose of his humorous spirit.
“I have a bit of a quirky sense of humor,” Schurke said. “I used to warn my students: the jokes don’t get any better; they just keep coming.”
