Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
Holley School’s new principal will get to keep doing what she has loved for more than nine years while taking up the mantle of a new challenge this school year.
Tiffanie Lambert, who is in her 30s, has taught special education in the district the last nine years, at Sweet Home Junior High School for eight years and Hawthorne “PALS” for one. She will continue doing that at Holley School half time as she begins her new duties as principal.
Lambert grew up in the San Francisco Bay area. She attended Washington State University in Pullman, Wash. She arrived in Sweet Home with her husband, Steve Lambert, when he went to work for Linn County parks.
Her first permanent job was as a substitute teacher in eastern Washington, she said. She worked as an office manager for YMCA while in college.
She began working with the developmentally disabled before college, she said, serving as a teaching assistant in a special needs class right after high school. During college, she worked in Special Olympics. She also worked as a specialized recreation coordinator for Whitman County, Wash., organizing activities for adults and children with cognitive disabilities.
“I just like the people,” she said. “It was just fun and inspiring all the time.”
That led her to a career working with the developmentally disabled.
Last year “I finished up my administrative program at the University of Oregon,” Lambert said. “To be able to get into administration but still teach is like my dream job.”
She has two jobs rolled into one, and Holley is a fantastic place to do it, she said. The staff is great, creative and flexible.
“The first minute you walk in the halls, you can see we’re all about kids,” she said.
As far as administration, “I like the part (about) being a resource for staff and other teachers,” she said, to “help teachers do what they do best – teach.”
She also enjoys the opportunity to interact with the community and parents, she said.
And the Holley community is involved in its school, she said, noting that the members of Holley Christian Church spent a day at the school painting on Aug. 10.
“I’m meeting families that are fifth-generation Holley,” she said. “That, to me, shows the historical significance of the building in this community.”
She said last week that she was looking forward to the start of the school year.
The transition “is going very smoothly,” she said. “The staff here is very flexible, so it’s going very well. It’s just too quiet. We’re ready for kids’ voice to be carrying through the halls.”
She graduated from WSU in 1998 with a bachelor of arts degree in education. She received a master’s degree from the University of Oregon in educational leadership, including administrative certification, in 2008.
The Lamberts have three children, Sierra, 10; Brendan, 7; and Abigail, 3.
“We love it here,” Lambert said of Sweet Home. “It’s just a beautiful place. People are warm and nice. It has a nice small-town atmosphere. It’s a great place to raise a family.”
Lambert enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, riding bikes, fishing at Clear Lake and spending time in the outdoors.