” I can’ t remember a lot, but I can remember kids’ names— and past kids, too. And when I do that and they’ re like,‘ How do you remember that? I’ m a senior!’ I say,‘ I can still see you as that little kid’.”
— Kelli Bruner
The writer’ s son, Henry Clifford, gets a bear hug from Principal Kelli Bruner on his last-ever day of elementary school on May 29.
photo by Shelley Williams feels appreciated, then they put forth that extra effort.”
Also, there’ s the fascinating fact that Bruner knows every student’ s name: all 222 of them—” plus brothers, sisters, and sometimes cousins, but don’ t ask me all the parents’ names; I have no idea,” she laughed. It’ s because she’ s hardly in her office; she’ s in classrooms as much as possible.“ I can’ t remember a lot, but I can remember kids’ names— and past kids, too. And when I do that and they’ re like,‘ How do you remember that? I’ m a senior!’ I say,‘ I can still see you as that little kid.’”
“ Just think of the psychological safety of having a friendly, familiar face so that you can focus on your education,” said parent Jeremiah Reichmann.
On the last day of classes, he and Lorna stood on the playground watching their youngest play games with other graduating fifth graders and their teachers, Olivia Howard and Michelle Joy, hours after the final bell rang.
Joy, a Helmsburg veteran of 24 years, says the building has always had this culture. It comes down to a depth of relationships that can’ t be replicated in a larger school or district.
“ We have a lot of autonomy here,” she said.“ I have some friends who teach in bigger corporations where they’ re required to be on the same page in the same text at the same time … or they have to start their curriculum the first week of school. I feel that it’ s very much encouraged here to build relationships first. If you don’ t build relationships first, you can’ t teach, because kids aren’ t going to learn from somebody they don’ t love and feel loves them.” As if on cue, she paused to hug one of her students goodbye.
Bruner leads that culture effortlessly, said Eliza Bowman, a homeschool and Helmsburg alumna and mother of two current students. For kids who struggle a little,“ her mother instincts will come out, you know what I mean? … Kelli cares about every single kid in this building,” she said.“ I sort of feel bad for kids who can’ t experience her and can’ t experience this school.”
“ In a nutshell,” Crum added,“ she really embodies what our corporation strives for: world-class opportunities, smallschool relationships, and lifelong impact.”
“ This is all I know,” Bruner said.“ This is my place, my home, my family, my community.”
Her daughters, Jori and Kennedy, attended this school; her husband, Mark, worked in the district, too.
Originally from Ellettsville, she started at Helmsburg in 1995 as a paraprofessional for third grade, then became
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