Name: Levi Bringold

Title: Principal

Organisation: St. John Lutheran School

Mr. Levi Bringold, Saint John's principal, has been a Lutheran educator for 16 years. Mr. Bringold has served at Trinity Lutheran in Reese before coming to Saint John in Fraser. Over the course of Mr. Bringold's career as a Lutheran educator, he has been in the classroom, has helped in athletics, and worked as an administrator.

Mr. Bringold was raised in Reese, MI, where he met his wife and began raising his two children. He is a graduate of Saginaw Valley State University where he earned his Bachelor's and Master's degrees. Mr. Bringold also earned his colloquy from Concordia, Ann Arbor, MI halfway into his second year of being an educator.

He has been involved in school improvement using the NLSA accreditation process as a commissioner and captain within the Michigan District. Mr. Bringold was a Board of Participants and chairman of a committee in the LEAP Alliance in the Saginaw Valley area. He also likes to spend time as a spiritual leader as a youth and high school Bible study leader when possible.

Thank you to the 2,000 leaders who’ve generously done the 7 Questions on Educational Leadership!

I hope Levi's answers will encourage you in your leadership journey. Enjoy!

Cheers,

Jonno White

1. What have you found most challenging as an Educational Leader?

The most challenging thing in my career has been taking a Call(job change) in the midst of COVID in the summer of 2020 and maintaining quality in-person education the following fall.

2. How did you become an Educational Leader? Can you please briefly tell the story?

When I was 27 there was a need for a principal and the committee picked me for the position. We were in survival mode with some animosity between the teachers and the Board of Education at the time and they became a pretty coherent unit within a few years.

3. How do you structure your work days from waking up to going to sleep?

I wake up, pray with my wife, go to school as my daughter works on announcements for the school, I get to school and have a Pastor-led Bible study, I teach two hours in the morning to keep the connections with the students, I go back to the office and catch up with my secretary on people that have contacted the school, I catch up on emails and phone calls, then I do a loop and visit the classrooms (as long as nothing pops up), I eat lunch with the staff, I dismiss the students at the end of the day and round back with the staff, I go home, hang out with my kids doing 3D printing things, podcasts, or building a shirt business, hang out with my wife, pray with the family, and go to sleep.

4. What's a recent lesson you've learned for the first time or been reminded of as an Educational Leader?

Our business is the hearts of students. Knowledge is all around us but the heart of education is the hearts of our students and showing them what it is to empathize, be compassionate, and loving. All too often I believe the students are the teachers at home.

5. What's one book that has had a profound impact on your journey as an Educational Leader so far? Can you please briefly tell the story of how that book impacted you?

The Bible, an awesome main character:) Switch is insightful as well. It talks about changing the culture of your school and shaping the culture of your school as one of the most impactful things you can do for your students. It is not about building a dynasty or making a name for yourself, it is about raising up new leaders and leaving a legacy of servanthood in a me-first world.

6. If you could only give one piece of advice to a young educator who aspires to be an Educational Leader, what would you say to them?

You will be lonely. Pray all the time. Play to your strengths and find others who support you and complement you with their strengths.

7. What is one meaningful story that comes to mind from your time as an Educational Leader, so far?

There are many, and I am not sure what you are looking for but I get to talk to many people in my office and we are all looking for success for our students. How are we working together to make that happen? Our school is a Christian school so when I have a 2nd-grader saying that we have a generational school, or having a dad ask if I can pray with his son, those are wins for sure.

We had a dad come in and say that our school was the inspiration for him to write a book and become a pastor, we have had grown men in my office needing help with tuition and break down when we figure out how to make it work. Always make the idea, the people's idea, never take credit, and always take blame.