Johnson Creek Elementary welcomed University of Wisconsin Whitewater alumna Melissa Enger as the new principal this fall.

As a student in the Johnson Creek School District, Enger watched and experienced the impact that her elementary and high school teachers had on herself and other students. After graduation at Johnson Creek High School, Enger entered into a recreation program for personal training at the Madison Area Technical College but switched to education and began her academic journey at UW-W. After getting married as a full time student and graduating in 2006, Enger had her first child and began her teaching career.

Enger made connections with other faculty and students as a teacher at Johnson Creek Elementary. She felt motivated to to rise into an administrative position after years of teaching.

“Honestly, it was not something I would’ve ever said I wanted to do, but the opportunity presented itself, and it was one that I couldn’t turn down,” Enger said. “I loved being in the classroom, but this was definitely the right move at just the right time.”

Looking to the future, Enger said she will focus on growth, as she hopes to positively impact students on a larger scale now that she’s the principal.

“The biggest challenges I’m expecting will come from what everyone is used to doing, but now I may be asking for something a little different. I’m learning every day and I know I will face many challenges along the way,” Enger said.

In her time at UW-W, Enger enjoyed meeting new people and learning from the experiences they each had in education.

“I went back to school for teaching after I got married. I know that I was more serious about my education at that point in my life, and feel that I took more away from all of the experiences I had at UW-W” Enger said.

Johnson Creek Elementary has a lot of teachers and staff members who went to UW-W and shared a similar experience, Enger explained. “We were all just trying to take as much from the experiences we were given right at that moment,” Enger said.

To current Warhawks and those to come, Enger’s advice is this, “You will never get this time back and the relationships you are forming and connections you are making now may impact you in ways you never expected later on.”