New Assistant Principal Mr. Craig Klingenfus is no stranger to venturing into the unknown.

As the former Goal Clarity Coach at Male High School, Klingenfus had the opportunity to work with faculty members across all subjects and disciplines. An English teacher by training, he emphasized that he is not a “one-trick pony.”

“I’ve worked with every department, and I’ve tried to understand the curriculum,” he said. “By all means, the teachers at Manual, just like the teachers at Male, are all experts in their subjects, and I guarantee that they’re all better teachers than I could be in that content. However, I do like to provide for them a forum where we can discuss how we can take what’s good and make it great.”

Klingenfus said that he recognizes the concerns that some students have with the lack of racial and gender diversity among school administrative faculty.

“Someone tweeted out last night, ‘Oh, just what Manual needs–another middle aged white man,’ and that’s exactly what I thought. That’s the last thing you all need,” he said. “But then I took a look back on where I’ve come from, where I’ve been and the progress and goals I’ve set for my previous school. I decided that I would put my name in the hat.”

Klingenfus’s official first day will be Oct. 12, exactly seven days before the beginning of Red/White week.

“I’m looking forward to calling it Manual/Male week instead of Male/Manual week,” he said. “I’m also excited to see the student body get involved and excited about the traditions.”

Check out the highlights from RedEye’s exclusive interview with Klingenfus above, and listen to the full audio below.