Meet the Principal
5 FUN FACTS ABOUT ME
1. I was born in New Mexico!
2) I love spreadsheets
3) I love good jokes... especially the jokes from our students that we read on announcements every day!
4) In the first grade I donated money to "adopt" an endangered manatee in Florida. I was very sad when I found out the manatee would not be coming to live at my house.
5) One of my best Dad Skills is to estimate our road trip arrival time down to the minute without the use of a GPS.
DR. DEREK LEININGER
I have worked my entire career with FWCS, and I love being the principal here at Glenwood Park. After completing my student teaching with FWCS, I began my career as a classroom teacher for 8 years, then moved on to an assistant principal role for 7 years, and this is my 3rd year as a principal. I received my bachelor’s degree from IU (2007), master’s degree from Ball State University (2013), and doctoral degree from Indiana State University (2019). I taught reading, social studies, and business education. As an administrator, I have worked at all three levels (elementary, middle, and high school). I am also an adjunct professor within the School of Education at the University of Saint Francis.
I enjoy building meaningful and productive relationships with our entire school community. I love it when I can serve and help others, students and adults alike. As a principal, I get to support teachers to help them do their job most effectively, and I get to support student learning to see them grow and thrive. I also have the opportunity to work alongside our families to be a supportive member of their team. As the saying goes, “It takes a village to raise a child.” I enjoy being part of that village here at Glenwood Park.
The PEOPLE are what makes Glenwood Park unique and amazing. We have such an amazing staff that are dedicated fully to our students. We have awesome family support and parents who want their children to succeed. We also have great kids. I really enjoy getting to interact with our students each day.
Most importantly, we want our students to learn and grow each day with us. We want students to acquire a lifelong love of learning so that they will continue to grow after they leave our school. Primarily, we want to support our students in their literacy skills. Being a strong reader is essential to learning every other content area, so we dedicate a lot of time and energy to helping our kids improve in their reading skills.
In my free time, I play ice hockey in an adult recreational league, and I am an active runner, participating in several races each year.
I can recite all 50 states in alphabetic order (thanks to my 5th grade teacher). I am married; my wife and I have two daughters. I recently turned 40 years old and on my birthday I accomplished my 2024 New Year’s Resolution of running a mile on the track under 6 minutes.
I love the Glenwood Park community and this neighborhood!
Instead of a typical birthday celebration with gifts and cake, Dr. Derek Leininger decided to mark his 40th birthday by running a mile to raise money for his Glenwood Park Elementary students. His goal was to run a mile in under 6 minutes. In return, he simply asked his supporters to donate $6 and help him raise $2087. That is one dollar for each week that he has been alive. All of the money raised is going to the Glenwood Park PTA earmarked for teacher requests. Those funds will be used for things like helping a student pay for a field trip or purchasing something extra a teacher might need. His finishing time was 5:49, way to go Dr. Leininger!