Learning the Ropes at Dixon High

Before John Barsotti takes over as principal he’s got a bit of homework to do – but last week he got an early start on it.

Barsotti met with Dixon High School’s as well as another former DHS principal, Dixon Unified School District’s Assistant Superintendant Brian Dolan, to learn a bit about his new job.

What can Barsotti expect from the principal’s position at Dixon High School?

“Long days, hard work and hopefully a lot of fun,” Dolan said.  “Having done that job myself it is exceedingly challenging and also very rewarding. It’s nice that our high school is in really good shape. Coming into a school where there is no catastrophes happening and no major fires to put out allows a new principal to make an adjustment pretty successfully.”

Chaidez and Dolan’s combined knowledge of Dixon High School gave Barsotti a sense of what’s in store for him once the first bell of the fall semester rings at Dixon High.

It’s a sound that Barsotti has come to be familiar with through his years in education. Barsotti has many years under his belt as an educator, coach and vice principal.

I’ve worked in three different school districts before coming to Dixon,” Barsotti said. “I’ve had multiple leaders. It’s been good to have multiple mentors to learn from.”

Prior to coming to Dixon Barsotti, who lives in Vacaville, was Fairfield High School’s vice principal for about a year. Before then, Barsotti worked as Winters High School’s assistant principal for five years. Barsotti began his career in education as a math teacher at Will C Wood High School in Vacaville. Throughout his 12-year employment at Wood, Barsotti’s dedication to education earned him a spot as the school’s assistant vice principal.

While at Wood Barsotti coached baseball for 10 seasons, he said, with the last five seasons coaching the varsity baseball team. The experience gave him a thorough understanding of the importance of sports and other extra-curricular activities in students’ lives. It’s something that he hopes to promote at Dixon High School, he said.

“All extra-curricular activities are very important to a school,” he said. “A lot of children hook into school because of its extra-curricular activities. It’s very important. In smaller school’s it’s very common for students to be involved.”

Barsotti also hopes to maintain the school’s level of academic excellence, he said. This year, the school made it onto the prestigious list of California Distinguished Schools.

Born in Okinawa Japan and raised in Eureka, Barsotti graduated from Eureka High School and studied at College of the Redwoods. From the community college, Barsotti transferred to UC Davis, where he earned his bachelors and masters degrees in mathematics as well as his teaching credential.

Barsotti also earned his administrative credential at Sacramento State University.

Asked what in particular he finds appealing about being a school principal, Barsotti said “I like that at the end of the day, you did something important. The impact is not just on the students, but the staff. It’s just a job where you never lose sight of your decisions.”

In addition with meeting with Chaidez and Dolan, Barsotti also met with District Superintendant Roger Halberg as well as some staff members at Dixon High School. For now, Barsotti’s priority is to meet staff, students, parents and teachers and listen, create a relationship with them, he said.

Barsotti said he’s aware of some of the challenges that await him at DHS.

“Budget is a concern, not just in our district, but also across the state,” he said. “I want to find ways to share our resources. It’s a challenge, but it’s not insurmountable. Many things that have been accomplished here are things that I will continue.”

At the same time, Barsotti said he will be working closely with teachers and staff to better improve the service the school gives to its students.

How much weight would students’ voices carry with decisions made by Barsotti?

“You can’t be in an environment (such as this) and not include students in the process,” he said. “There should always have a voice. I have an open-door policy. I look forward to and I anticipate our students, staff, parents and community to voice their concerns and thoughts.”

Barsotti also anticipates being as hands-on as possible, he said, spending time getting to know the school by building relationships with staff, students and teachers, and spending less of his day at his desk, he said.

Barsotti said he is looking forward for the bell to ring so that he can begin as principal at Dixon High.

“It was really the ideal situation for me,” he said. “It’s not a situation where I am looking to parlay this (into another position). I hope that this position … is the last job I will hold.”

“We are asking John to go in with a critical eye,” Dolan said. “Our high school is good but its not as good as we want it to be.”

Dolan said that Barsotti will have two very knowledgeable assistance principals in Nick Girimonte and Stephanie Marquez who will help him ease into his new job.

“No principal does it alone,” Dolan said. “I think we have a really strong team.”

When Barsotti is not thinking education, he is watching his favorite baseball team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and planning outdoor adventures. Barsotti is unmarried and has no children, he said.