ELLINWOOD — Shawn Henderson is the new principal at Ellinwood High School, and he comes with energy and enthusiasm for his new job.

When he began looking for a job, he was immediately attracted to the advertisement from Ellinwood for the EHS principal’s position. "They were speaking my language in Ellinwood," he said. "This is the place I wanted to come."

The advertisement used words such as special person. "I approved of the vision. The attitude jumped off the page," Henderson said, and he was sure he was the right fit.

Henderson graduated from Maize High School and went to college at Wichita State University. During his years in college, he taught drums at Maize High School.

The principal explains his jump from music to administration. "I wanted the opportunity to see all kids that walked in school. It’s fun to be in all areas of the school."

Henderson’s background is in music, particularly drums. He was band director at Scott City, and he experienced success with that. With his creative, outside-of-the-box thinking, he is willing to try new things to educate kids.

After having completed his master’s degree online, Henderson plans to continue his education in the future. He has one specific goal though— he wants to be the principal where his kids go to high school.

To relax, Henderson still turns to music, finding he enjoys it even more since it is no longer his full-time job. He plays the drums. He enjoys jazz, and plays the vibraphone.

His goals for the school are to create a culture where kids are excited to come to school and learn. Activity involvement is very important, and the principal will encourage every student to become more involved in activities.

He wants to do something to get people excited about school and wants it to rub off on parents, teachers, and students.

Henderson is married to his wife Marie, who is a math teacher at Great Bend High School. He has two children, Mallory and Nate. They are both students at Ellinwood Grade School.

In his spare time, Henderson likes to spend time with his kids, playing such games as neighborhood football.