CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The newest principal working for the Corpus Christi Independent School District is also a veteran.
If you judged Sarah Owen solely by her military experience, you’d figure she’d be working in the medical field, but she says education is her true passion, and it’s led her to CCISD’s James Fannin Elementary School.
“I truly believe you’re where you’re supposed to be in the world, and this is where I’m supposed to be right now” said Owen.
For Owen, education was a calling which started at an early age.
“I was that child that my parents knew that I was going to be a teacher,” Owen said. “Family events, I was there and we were playing school.”
After a year of college, Owen joined the U.S. Army in 2000. She served three years on active duty, three in the reserves, and another two on in-active reserve as a respiratory therapist.
When her time in uniform was finished, Owen decided it was time to head back to school.
“It was a calling, it was just in me,” said Owen.
Owen became a teacher. She spent eight years teaching science at Sinton ISD. In 2017, she moved to CCISD as an assistant principal at Hamlin Middle School.
“As a teacher, I was put into leadership positions, and it just came naturally to me, I really enjoyed it,” said Owen. “I knew that this is where I was headed.”
Where she was headed was the principal’s office. Earlier this month, Owen was named Fannin Elementary’s new principal. Quite an accomplishment in a relatively short time.
She has welcomed each challenge along the way just as she welcomes her students and staff every day.
“It’s very important to me that I welcome all of my staff, they need that ‘good morning’, as do my students,” said Owen.
Even though she’s in charge, Owen still spends most of her day in the classroom working directly with students.
“If there’s something on my calendar I have to tend do, I tend to that, but if not I’m in classrooms,” said Owen. “I’m watching, working with the teachers and we’re seeing how everything’s going.”
“It’s been wonderful having Ms. Owen here,” said Fannin Elementary assistant principal Monica Rizo. “We love her, our students are so excited that she’s on our campus.”
It may be a short time into Owen’s tenure at Fannin Elementary, but staff say they’ve noticed a positive change, and look forward to working with her for a long time.
