Not Ready for the Rocking Chair

As a general trend at the Woodlands School, events of consequence are rarely low-key. To see evidence of this phenomenon in action, one need only look at our recent SAC Election Assembly. An event that should have been a rather mundane affair became a spectacle to rival anything offered by Vince McMahon. Another example would be the erection of our beautiful sign; a fairly inconsequential occurrence was turned into a year-long controversy. Surprisingly, the obvious love of sensationalism that colours the happenings here at the Woodlands seems to have overlooked an event that is actually significant: the imminent retirement of our principal, Mr. Pirk.

After spending thirty-one years in the teaching profession (and loving every minute of it), Mr.Pirk and his wife, who started teaching in the same year, have decided to retire from pedagogy (or I guess in Mr. Pirk's case, administration of pedagogy).

In an interview with HTP, Mr. Pirk decided to address the situation in rather cavalier terms. Speaking of his imminent withdrawal, he stated: "That doesn't mean we're [he and his wife] going to just roll over and die." Mr. Pirk sees his retirement not so much as an end, but as a beginning, saying that he and his wife feel that "it is time for phase 2 of [their] lives."

There is a certain element of intrigue involved in our principal's retirement, coming at such a politically and financially strained time in government-board-union relations. HTP was interested in some of Mr. Pirk's motivations towards retirement, and asked him whether or not his decision had anything to do with the current problems between the teacher's union and the school boards. Mr. Pirk stated that, necessarily, further labour unrest did in fact provide an impetus towards his decision. He further elaborated on the issue of motivations, saying that "once you're eligible for retirement, it's basically mathematics." It seems that, numerically, retirement at this time worked out in our principal's favour. Another motivating factor was concern for his fellow educators. Mr. Pirk and his wife felt that by retiring, they "make room for some young people that have been declared surplus to the Peel board, and maybe some of those young people will have an opportunity to get back into the profession. And the one thing I think the profession needs is the enthusiasm and energy of young people."

We here at HTP will certainly miss Mr. Pirk. Even though he "confiscated" our issue, banned us from the school, and labeled us as sexist and racist, he certainly had his heart in the right place.

Despite enjoying spending time with students, apparently "even with HTP," Mr. Pirk is quite prepared for the "loungin'" lifestyle. He has a retirement house built in Collingwood, ready to be inhabited. Feeling that he and his wife are both happy, healthy and relatively young, Mr. Pirk is ready to use his extra time wisely, relaxing and making no major decisions for the first year, and waiting to see what "phase 2 brings."