February 7, 2014
| 50TH ANNIVERSARY
A matter of ‘principal’
50 years of leadership at Maine South
Dr. Clyde Watson was the first principal at Maine South, and he served in that role for 17 years. Dr. Watson was very involved in student activities, and believed it was important to interact with the students. After learning the boys’ basketball team was heading to the state championship, he called every bus company to try to get students to the game in Peoria. Also, he always attended award banquets, dances, and sports events. Dr. Watson was also involved in Title IX, which is the legislation that requires schools that receive federal funds to provide women with equal opportunities to compete in athletics. He went to the IHSA to present a proposal to allow seasons of different sports for girls. Upon retiring, Dr. Watson had many memories. According to the 1981 yearbook, his three highlights of his years as principal included Maine South being rated the number one school in 1973, the girls’ swim team winning the first state championship in 1975, and the boys’ basketball team winning the state championship in 1979.
Dr. Clyde Watson
Before becoming principal at Maine South, Mr. Robert Barker was already employed by District 207. In 1956, he began his career in education as an English teacher at Maine East. From 1964 to 1979, he was the assistant principal at Maine South. After that, Mr. Barker served as principal of Maine West from 1979 to 1981. From there, Mr. Barker moved to Maine South, were he served as principal from 1981 to 1986. He helped re-design the layout of Maine South including the placement of common areas and some classrooms. He was also in charge of hiring new staff and working with them to design a master schedule. Mr. Barker is remembered as an administrator who always had a smile on his face and was always out in the halls talking to students.
PHOTO CREDIT MR. BEERY
Before becoming Maine South’s principal, Dr. Thomas Cachur was the assistant principal of students at Maine North from 1976-1981. He Mr. Robert Barker transferred to Maine West and was an assistant principal of staff from 1981 to 1986. In 1986, Dr. Cachur became the principal at Maine South and served in the role for 18 years, retiring in 2003. He is responsible for many of the changes around the school that remain today. One of his proudest accomplishments was the remodeling of the M.S. library. He also oversaw the addition of the writing labs. While he was principal, the fitness center and visitors’ locker room were built in order to give students more opportunities to stay active. Because the school was rapidly growing during these years, the A-wing was expanded to provide more classroom space. Dr. Cachur is especially proud of the staff he hired, many of whom still work in the building today.
Dr. Thomas Cachur
Mr. David Claypool began his 16-year journey at Maine South as an English teacher. He was later appointed chairman of the English department, and then became Assistant Principal for Instruction at Maine West. In 2003, he became Maine South’s principal, and held the position until 2010. Since 1965, graduation ceremonies had been held on campus (except for the graduating class of 2004, which was held at Harper Community College because of construction of bleachers), until 2008, when Mr. Claypool helped move them to the Rosemont Theatre to avoid any possible weather issues. Over the summer of 2009, Mr. Claypool was involved in adding artificial turf and lights to the athletic stadium.
Mr. Shawn Messmer, Maine South’s current principal, has held the position since 2011. Before coming to Maine South, Mr. Messmer Mr. David Claypool began his career in education as a Social Studies teacher for eight years in Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania. After his teaching positions, he worked as the assistant principal for Souderton Area High School (located near Philadelphia) for five years. Mr. Messmer has worked on different policy changes in his time at Maine South, such as changing the cell phone policy to allow students to use their cell phones in the hallways. Mr. Messmer has big plans for the future. He hopes to change the schedule of the school year to have finals before winter break. Also, he wants to give students the chance to come in late or leave early for those that have first and ninth period off. In 2013, Maine South was ranked the 27th-best high school in Illinois by U.S. News & World Report.
Mr. Shawn Messmer
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