Ray Blute is the new middle school principal at Monte Vista Christian School in Watsonville.

When former Aptos Junior High School principal Ray Blute retired after a career in education that had spanned three decades, he knew he it wouldn’t be the end.

“I don’t have any hobbies,” he said Monday. “Education is my life. I wasn’t ready to retire, that’s the bottom line.”

Blute retired at the end of last year when he reached the Pajaro Valley Unified School District’s limit on retirement benefits. He realized he would make more money retired than he would working.

After his sister-in-law found the job posting for a middle school principal position at Monte Vista Christian School during her own job search, Blute knew he had found the perfect place.

“I’m a Christian,” he said. “It’s a real central part of my life.”

Blute added that working in a private school frees him from much of the quagmire of red tape that plagues public schools.

He said the smaller population will allow him greater flexibility to move advanced students to higher grades, a difficulty in an overpopulated school.

“It seemed like an opportunity to do things that I couldn’t do in public schools,” he said.

He said his new school is a change from Aptos Junior High, where he oversaw 50 staff members and more than 700 students. At MVCS, Blute now manages 12 staff members and about 150 students.

These numbers allow Blute the option of checking in with each teacher on a daily basis, he said.

“I spend more time with the kids, more time with the parents and more time with the teachers,” he said.

Being in a private school also allows greater flexibility when choosing curriculum. Public schools, he said, are bound to state-mandated materials.

“I don’t have as many reports and forms required by the state,” he said. “This really allows us a lot of flexibility, and there’s no red tape.”

Blute said that a challenge of his new position will be creating a feeling of community among the students, more than half of whom will be new next year. AJH students live relatively close to the school, but those at MVCS are spread out over three counties.

Blute received his teaching credential from San Jose State University, and earned his master’s in Education at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, then taught physical education for several years.

When his plan to become a varsity football coach fell through, he found himself wondering what his next step would be.

“My strongest gifts are in the area of administration and encouragement,” he said. “A friend of mine had signed up for some courses in educational administration and invited me to join him. I thought, ‘Why not?’”

That decision led to more than 30 successful years in teaching, administration and curriculum development. Blute went on to work at a junior high school on the Central Coast. When he first started working there, student achievement was low, and there were gangs on campus and drug dealers across the street. By the end of his eight years there, it had been recognized as a California Distinguished School.

Blute and his wife, Carol, had long wanted to return to the Santa Cruz area, where they have family and friends, so he applied for a position in curriculum development in the Pajaro Valley Unified School District, where he spent five years. This was followed by six years as principal of Aptos Junior High.

Blute replaced Andy Robinson, who retired in July after 11 years.

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*Photo by Steve Kiebus*

(Published in 7/29/08 edition)

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