Safine steps up as interim principal with Robinson on brief leave

Assistant principal Brian Safine stood before a crowd of parents at the monthly PTSO meeting on Oct. 13, announcing various school-wide events like Homecoming and ongoing activities such as recent band tournaments, robotics competitions, sports games and the PSAT.

Speaking at the PTSO meeting was just one of the responsibilities that Safine took over during his brief time as interim principal from Oct. 3-17 while principal Paul Robinson was on leave following back surgery recovery.

Safine said that his role for the most part during his time as interim principal remained the same as it has been since 2004 when he became an assistant principal at the school.

The main difference was an increase in the number of questions he was asked over email and in person. In his assistant principal position, he can answer most of the questions put to him, but as interim principal, he said he “didn’t always have the answers.”

Even with everything running smoothly, Safine said that the school felt Robinson’s absence, especially with the attention that Robinson gives to details of the school’s workings.

“We missed Mr. Robinson mostly because he loves the school as much as anyone who’s ever worked here, and also because when he’s gone, we all had a little more work to do,” Safine said.

Safine enjoyed the opportunity but is glad that Robinson has recovered quickly and has come back to work.

“It’s been a lot of fun the past couple of weeks working more with the staff and the students and the community,” Safine said, “not only to manage what’s happened at school but to broadcast the highlights of what’s been going on here.”

Robinson expressed gratitude to everyone who stepped in while he was away, including superintendent Bob Mistele, assistant superintendents Carrie Bosco and Greg Medici, and directors Heath Rocha and Annette Grasty, who all arrived on campus to help. He claimed that they did “much better than he would have,” saying that his surgery went well and he is on his way to a full recovery.

“I hated being away from school. In fact, I snuck back into school the first Saturday after my surgery so I could send out my Week at a Glance,” Robinson said. “Being at school makes me feel alive so I was really struggling being away.”