Kirkland Named Albert Einstein Principal

's new principal is Garrett Kirkland, a former assistant principal at California Middle School, the Sacramento City Unified School District Board of Education announced Thursday.

"I'm excited," Kirkland said. "I'm looking forward to all the new things [there are] to learn about Albert Einstein."

He said some of his priorities at Cal included increasing community involvement and getting more neighborhood kids to attend the school. He hopes to make similar improvements at Albert Einstein.

"I want the school to be impressive," he said.

Kirkland served as an assistant principal there for seven years, but teaching wasn't his first career choice. He was coaching baseball at El Camino High School and working in public relations when he decided he wanted to be a teacher.

He worked in an overflow kindergarten class and later taught sixth grade at Joseph Bonnheim Elementary School.

"People started coming to me when they wanted to get things done [at Joseph Bonnheim]," Kirkland said, adding that was when he decided he wanted more responsibility.

He said Cal was a good fit for him, but noted middle schools present unique challenges.

"Half of the school leaves every year," he said, adding that can also make changes easier to implement.

Kirkland, whose father was a gym teacher at Albert Einstein Middle School, said he hopes to create "a culture where it's not uncool to be successful."

Kirkland has about a month to get to know the school before classes start on Sept. 6.