EAST MIDDLE SCHOOL

25000 Middlebelt Road

Farmington Hills, MI 48336-1345
Phone 248-48-3601 Fa! 248-48-3606
"enneth #anders, Prin$i%al
&a'id (ea)le*, +ssistant Prin$i%al ,inda Fo!, +ssistant Prin$i%al
June 10, 2014
To Whom it may concern:
Over the last two years, I have had the opportunity to be a mentor to ynn Walter as she wor!ed
toward her "d #pecialist de$ree in "ducational eadership% While I ori$inally approached this
responsibility with e&citement over my opportunity to share my !nowled$e and e&periences, I
was pleased to discover it was an incredible learnin$ e&perience 'or me as well%
(uildin$ administrators have many varyin$ responsibilities, demandin$ the administrator be able
to adapt to the needs o' the situation% (ein$ able to be 'irm and consistent while remainin$ 'air
and compassionate is a challen$e 'or even the most seasoned o' administrators% ynn has
repeatedly demonstrated her ability to evaluate a di''icult situation and ta!e the necessary steps
while supportin$ the needs o' the individuals involved% #he is e)ually able to $uide a teacher
stru$$lin$ with an an$ry parent as a student devastated by an ar$ument with a 'riend% This is not
a s!ill which can be tau$ht%
ynn has a stron$ understandin$ o' the *bi$ picture+ and can o'ten see the potential problems
and correct them be'ore they occur% ,er stron$ relationship with sta'' and administration
enables her to share sta'' ideas, )uestions and concerns as well as o''er su$$estions 'or
improvement to the buildin$ administrators in such a way that the ideas are o'ten utili-ed and
even e&panded upon%
.s the co/'ounder o' our 0"T# pro$ram, ynn too! the initiative to desi$n a pro$ram supportin$
the students who need the most $uidance 'rom adults% The pro$ram was built on the premise o'
developin$ relationships between sta'' and students, one o' ynn1s many stren$ths% .lthou$h
many sta'' members were hesitant, their insecurities )uic!ly 'aded under her $uidance and
support% ,er enthusiasm 'or the pro$ram was conta$ious and )uic!ly spread throu$hout the sta''%
.s a department chair, ynn leads our science department in studyin$ and preparin$ 'or
implementation o' 2ommon 2ore, developin$ common assessments and settin$ departmental
$oals% In order to support her department 'urther, she also con'idently accepted the additional
responsibility o' #chool Improvement, 3rowth and "valuation and Technolo$y% The members
o' her department are very con'ident in her abilities and trust her 4ud$ment implicitly%

EAST MIDDLE SCHOOL
25000 Middlebelt Road
Farmington Hills, MI 48336-1345
Phone 248-48-3601 Fa! 248-48-3606
"enneth #anders, Prin$i%al
&a'id (ea)le*, +ssistant Prin$i%al ,inda Fo!, +ssistant Prin$i%al
"ven be'ore her 4oinin$ the "d eadership pro$ram, ynn was one o' the *$o to+ people on my
crisis team, and was e&pected to be able to ta!e the leadership role in the event o' a buildin$
crisis% I always had con'idence that she could $uide the sta'' con'idently throu$h our buildin$
protocols and ma!e ad4ustments as needed%
This sprin$, 'or the 'irst time in my 15/year administrative career, I 'ound it necessary to ta!e a
leave 'rom wor! to recover 'rom sur$ery% I typically would stru$$le to hand my sta'', students
and buildin$ over to someone else, even 'or a short time, but I 'ound mysel' relieved when ynn
a$reed to step in 'or me% I had such con'idence in her abilities6 I was able to rela& !nowin$ they
were in capable hands% ynn was not 7actin$7 .ssistant 8rincipal 'or the month I was out%%% she
became the .ssistant 8rincipal% .s always, ynn threw hersel' into the position and $ave it all
her attention and passion%
,er dedication to her students, sta'' and administration in addition to her constant desire to learn
is part o' what ma!es her who she is% I have learned much while $oin$ on this 4ourney with ynn
and sharin$ the process with her% I am honored to have been part o' the e&perience%
. 'ew months a$o, I said, 7I am con'ident she will ma!e a terri'ic administrator%7 0ow I am
con'ident she is a terri'ic administrator%
inda .% 9o&
:istrict .thletic :irector
.ssistant 8rincipal, "ast ;iddle #chool
9armin$ton 8ublic #chools