Clint Raever, principal of YCHS, is a man with a mission; to be an agent for change. Starting July 1, 2021, Raever will be Yamhill Carlton high school’s new superintendent of the district. He has been the principal of YC since 2019, and now he will be in charge of the district. 

But he wasn’t always the head of YC.

Raever attended Chemeketa College for a year before heading to Western Oregon University. He majored in natural sciences with an earth science emphasis. He went on to take classes at Portland State, where he got his administrative license. 

Raever’s first job was as the assistant principal for Lincoln County. He worked there for 15 years. After Lincoln County, Raever taught for five years in Silverton. 

Once he and his wife decided to move, he started looking for new jobs around the area. He first considered Stayton (another town in Oregon) but ended up settling with Yamhill Carlton High School. Raever also notes how perfect this school was for him. 

“I walked into YC and it immediately felt like home,” he stated. It’s been a little over half a year since he first stepped into the school.

Raever has taught primarily freshmen over the years and admits to it being his favorite grade. He says that he likes working with freshmen and watching them as they face this new reality head-on. 

“I like the experience that freshmen are going to have coming into a building and kind of learning what high school is about, start planning their future, start thinking about life after high school,” Raever said.

His favorite part of his job is the staff and students; he especially loves interacting with the kids! He says that the job is “all about the students and staff.” He loves to make the experience better for kids; just one part of his mission.

When asked if he loves his job, Raever responded, “I do, I do. Just like with anything, there are parts of jobs that are not enjoyable, but I really don’t know what else I would do outside of education.”

He expects positive relationships with teachers, and hopes to keep on building those positive relations!

“Number one for me is that we build positive relationships and positive culture in the building, and once you have that [positive relationship and culture] then it’s much easier to get students on board. Also, when there are times that you do need to have difficult conversations, positive relationships make those conversations easier.”

Although there are many great parts to his job, there’s always some difficulty. Raever states that the hardest part of his job is dealing with difficult conversations, whether it be with students or staff. He mentions that it would have been nice to know not to take things too personally before starting this job. 

Overall, Raever really enjoys his job here at YC and hopes to keep working for more positive change and relationships, especially with his upcoming opportunity to be the district’s superintendent. It’s been a long journey for Clint Raever to finally arrive at YC, but I think I speak for everyone when I say that we hope he stays even longer!