In an effort to raise funds for Helping Others Through Giving (HOG) Week, principal Derrell Douglas and freshman Angel Castaneda participated in “Douglas Switch Day,” in which they switched places as student and principal, on April 5.

“One of the reasons I enjoy Douglas Switch Day is because I get to attend classes as a student,” Douglas said. “Most of the content was above my head, but the students were engaged and learning at high levels.”

In order to participate, Castaneda donated to charity and won.

“I entered because I thought it would be a fun opportunity to do something new,” she said. “My schedule was pretty busy. I observed classrooms and completed evaluations, went on lunch duty and dealt with grants. I met a lot of staff and some board members too. I shook a lot of hands throughout the day.”

Douglas said he was reminded how long a 90-minute block of time was.

“Luckily, my teachers varied the activities so that we weren’t trying to focus on the same activity for the entire block,” he said. “It’s hard to simply sit still in a desk for 90 minutes without standing and stretching your legs.”

Seeing the reactions of staff members when they received a grant was exciting, Castaneda said.

“Dealing with grants was a little scary but fun because I had to take pictures with important people,” she said. “We delivered two grants, one for a special education teacher and another for a biology teacher.”

Douglas had a doctor’s appointment on the day of the switch.

“He (the doctor) knows what I do for a living, so he asked why I was dressed in shorts and a t-shirt,” he said. “I explained and told him that I needed to hurry back because I was missing my dance class. He told me ‘Oh, you shouldn’t be dancing with your back in this condition.’”

Castaneda said she has developed a stronger respect for Douglas’ job.

“Now I’m a lot friendlier with the staff and they approach me because I was Principal for a Day,” she said. “I really enjoyed being a part of this experience.”