Joining the Chamblee Charter High School ranks this year, along with an array of new administrators and counselors, are three fresh smiling faces – a crew of secretaries with high hopes for the school year.

“I hear Chamblee is a great school, great environment, and I was just interested in coming here and joining the team,” said registrar Kenyatta Phillips. “The people in this school are very, very supportive. I’m excited about that.”

All three came to Chamblee for the same reason – the students.

“When I did research on this school, I saw a lot of people spoke very highly about the kids,” said Ashlee Allen, the secretary of the attendance office. “I love working with kids.”

Campbell offered a similar opinion.

“I like to work with kids,” said Marilyn Campbell, Mr Johnson’s secretary. “[Working as a secretary is] a different path, but I’m excited to be here.”

Elizabeth Sanchez, the principal’s administrative assistant, joined the team last year, but voices the same ideas as her three associates.

“I love seeing all the kids return back, and then you get to talk to them,” said Sanchez. “You get to see what they did over the summer, and how they’re excited to start the year and keep progressing as they grow up.”

In addition to their love of the students, the secretaries also expressed a pleasant surprise about the parental support here at Chamblee.

“The parental involvement here is unmatched,” said Phillips. “I really enjoy that.”

Despite this, the parents can occasionally be difficult to work with.

“[Some challenges so far have been] angry parents,” said Allen. “It’s been difficult making sure that they are serviced the right way.”

Outside of school, each secretary has her own special interest. Phillips loves Disney, her favorite characters being Aladdin and Simba. Campbell loves staying busy and being outside.

“I love to go to the movies, love to eat, hike, bike ride,” she said. “Anything that keeps me active.”

Sanchez spends her time drawing and taking care of her bulldog, Waffles.

“He’s about four and a half years old,” she said. “I want him to be the mascot and I’m trying to bring him to a game, but I got to get it past the coaches.”

A week into working at Chamblee, the secretaries have started to adjust to their new jobs, and are looking forward to the school year to come.

“I love Chamblee. I love my staff,” said Sanchez. “I hope to keep working with each and every single individual. I think we make a great team.”