Principal Dana Mericle at her desk in Williamstown Middle School
On Tuesday, Nov. 10 I sat down with Williamstown Middle School’s Principal Dana Mericle. Upon entering the office, she greeted me with a warm smile and kind eyes.
”You are Christy-Lynn’s sister, aren’t you?”
She remembered my 34-year-old sister whom she taught in her first few years of teaching.
Raised in Williamstown, Mericle has been with the Monroe Township Public School District for 30 years.
She moved to Washington Township, NJ in 1982, when she married her [late] husband. Her 19-year-old daughter Alyssa is a television broadcasting major at Temple University and her youngest, Ashlee, is a 17-year-old Washington Township High School student.
In high school Mericle loved performing in plays. One of the plays she was involved with was “Fiddler On The Roof.”
Mericle went to Upsala College in East Orange, NJ, where she started out as a theatre major. After taking general education courses, she found sociology and psychology interesting. She didn’t decide until later to go for teaching. During college she worked part-time as a waitress.
When asked about her first day of teaching, Mericle said, “I was very nervous. I really didn’t feel confident.” She admits it took her some time to get adjusted, but still remembers her very first students.
She spent 1 year at Whitehall Elementary School as a 3rd grade teacher, before becoming a 3rd grade teacher at Radix, where she stayed for 18 years.
Once her children grew a little older Mericle decided to go back to school. She attended Rowan University when it was still called Glassboro State. She received her masters in administration, and worked in administration for 19 years. She was an Assistant Principal to the middle school for 10 years, but most recently has become the Principal.
Over the years, Mericle was recognized for her impression left on children. While teaching at Radix she received “Teacher of the Year” in the 1988-89 school year. She was also placed in the “Who’s Who Among American Teachers,” about a dozen times. In the 2004-05 school year, she made the, “Who’s Who in Women’s Leadership.”
Mericle has taught 3rd, 5th, and 6th grade children. She said that making the move from the elementary school to the middle school wasn’t uncomfortable since the age difference wasn’t too far apart.
I asked her what her most memorable moment has been in her career, or her biggest obstacle. She explained that she doesn’t like the word “obstacle” because it seems like a negative word, and sees “challenge” as a more positive one. All in all, she says the biggest challenge has been the transitions from 3rd to 6th grade, from teaching to administration, and finally from assistant principal to principal.
She says that she has had students who are the children of her previous students.
When asked if she had a favorite teacher growing up, she said, “I liked them all. It’s hard to say my favorite. I was a kid that liked school..a lot.” She says that she was inspired by her teachers to do what she’s doing now.
She admitted that she misses the classroom, and would eventually like to work at the college level, teaching students who want to be teachers. However, she finds being in administration to be fulfilling. ”You have the opportunity to touch more people – to reach them,” Mericle said.
Unfortunately, I never had the pleasure in having ‘Mrs. Mericle’ as a teacher, but my older sisters did. They, along with most 20 to 30-somethings in Williamstown fondly remember her.
“I think that when you go into education…I don’t think that there’s any better job in the world.” – Dana Mericle
