Many faces roam the halls of Revere High School (RHS). Some faces are marching towards their next class, others are teachers or faculty navigating the crowd to reach their destination, but one face stands tall as a leader at RHS.
RHS Principal Doug Faris has completed his first semester in his new role, following seven years of service as assistant principal at RHS.
Faris said he has enjoyed his time as principal so far. He has maintained the passion from his old role while dealing with the expanded responsibilities he has taken on this year.
“The sheer volume of tasks, it’s a big difference how fast my day goes. I walk in here at 7:00am and it feels like twenty minutes later I’m walking back out to do buses,” Faris said.
Faris hit the ground running and has used his years of experience at Revere to feel his way through the year. School spirit is important to Faris, which he feels has been going well this year.
“It’s been good. One way I get a beat on how the year is going is the assemblies and sports games… I think the kids are very excited just to show up,” Faris said.
Following his hiring as principal, Faris said the staff has been very pleased with the change.
“I feel as if the staff was relieved when they named me principal. Anytime there is new leadership you have to play the ‘get to know you’ game… that did not have to happen,” Faris said.
Accepting the new position came with more responsibilities to Faris, along with more authority over what goes on at the school. Faris said his favorite part of becoming principal was having an impact.
“I love having the ability to say yes to things… being in a position to say ‘I support you, let’s try it,’” Faris said.
Faris also said he enjoys interacting with students which he has done throughout his tenure at Revere.
“[The students] are crazy but [they are] fun,” Faris said.
One close resource of Faris is School Resource Officer (SRO) Scott Dressler, who started working at RHS the same day as Faris.
“He was the first person I met. I was sitting down watching soccer practice in the summer, and he walked out and we just started talking. We built a relationship from that first day eight years ago and I’ve seen him through the past eight years just caring about the kids,” Dressler said.
Dressler said Faris has a good relationship with the students, and he often sees Faris at student activities, such as sporting events, musical performances, and various performing arts.
“I think he is very involved with the kids. He is very visible and present… He’s always available,” Dressler said.
Dressler and Faris’s relationship has grown from the position change.
“It’s actually better now because we meet more often. Before I had to go to Dr. Peltz with things, and now I can go straight to him… we are constantly in communication,” Dressler said.
Dressler said that the best part of having him as principal is how open the communication is.
“He’s someone you can talk to. He’s not gonna say ‘this is my way or the highway’… He will listen to you,” Dressler said.
This ability to listen and communicate has made a large impact on the school. Dressler admires Faris’s ability to balance between students and staff.
“He has the unique ability to relate to kids and the staff without picking a side which I haven’t seen from an administrator in a while… I don’t think he has one enemy in the school,” Dressler said.
Another person who has felt Faris’s impact has been social studies department head Jeff Fry, who said Faris has connected the past to the present well.
“I think that Mr.Faris has done a good job of trying to integrate things that have worked in the last few years with some new challenges,” Fry said.
Fry also said that Faris is trying to keep the transition seamless. Following Dr.Peltz’s departure, Faris has successfully maintained the status quo.
“He didn’t want to change a lot of what he and Dr.Peltz did together,” Faris said.
Fry said that Faris has been passionate about making RHS better. Whether he is pushing activities or making someone’s day better, Faris has uplifted moral.
“He has certain passions he wants to carry through Revere, and he’s been able to do that now as principal,” Fry said.
Dressler and Fry are just two of the many faces Faris has lifted up through his ability to listen and lead. Faris’ connection is felt throughout the building and impacts the surrounding community.
