So much time, but no idea what to do with it. After 29 years at KSD, Dr. Mike Havener will retire on July 1, 2023, having been a business teacher, an assistant principal, the assistant superintendent of finance and operations and 12 years as principal. He said that besides spending more time with his family, he doesn’t know what he’s going to do with the new time he has.

“I have nothing planned,” Havener said. “We have family trips this summer, but those are things we’d always take. I’m [going to take] retirement day by day to see what possibilities are out there.”

Havener’s retirement also comes with the transition to the new principal, Dr. Seth Harrell. Havener said that while Harrell has visited KHS twice, there hasn’t been any transfer of responsibilities yet. 

“As we get closer to the end of the year, we [are going to] have to [start] asking Dr. Harrell what he wants to do for next year,” Havener said. “As of right now, I’m still doing my normal responsibilities.”

Havener’s retirement also means the retirement of Mrs. Ravenscraft, Havener’s secretary, and the replacement will be someone Dr. Harrell chooses. Havener said that the bar is set very high for whoever replaces Mrs. Ravenscraft. 

“[Mrs. Ravenscraft] is the heart and soul [of KHS],” Havener said. “She knows everything that goes on at the school. She has had so many opportunities in the last 27 years that she’s had experience in all aspects and people look to her for support, guidance and information. She is the go to person.”

Mrs. Ravenscraft started in the typing pool at KHS, where she and two others typed up documents for teachers and made photocopies. She also helped out as a library assistant until she became a receptionist in the main office and then principal secretary under Dr. Holley and Havener. She said she and her husband plan to go traveling when she retires.

“Every year we go to Door County in July,” Mrs. Ravenscraft said. “We typically only go for a week or week and a half, [but] this year we’re going for two and a half weeks. The tentative plan is that at the end of September, we’re going to take two, three [weeks and] head up towards Vermont and Maine and to see the Northeast in the fall.”

Mrs. Ravenscraft said she waited to retire until Havener did because Havener was one of the best bosses she ever had. Havener said he is very thankful for her sacrifice of waiting until he retired. He said the retirement decision was officially made while barbecuing on the patio with his wife. 

“I said [to my wife], ‘Tomorrow’s the day,’” Havener said. “I’m gonna send [the letter of retirement] to [KSD] tomorrow. I can’t remember exactly when I did it. But I knew [I was retiring] at that moment, [since] we were talking like this is going to be my final year.”

After 12 years working together, Mrs. Ravenscraft and Dr. Havener’s working relationship will come to an end. Mrs. Ravenscraft has many hopes for the future, especially good health for her and her husband. 

“If something happens to his health, and we’re not able to do the things that we wanted to do, I will regret I didn’t go ahead and retire [when I could],” Mrs. Ravenscraft said. “So I’m hoping for good health for both of us so we can travel and do the fun things that we want to do.” 

After 29 years in the district, Havener has many memories, but he said the best part of being a principal is working with terrific people and seeing students grow. While he said he may not know what he’s going to do yet, he does hope to be there for his kids.

“My hope is that I don’t have to miss out on what I was missing out on before with my kids,” Havener said. “Whether it’s a soccer game or a dance competition, they made a big sacrifice, because I’m not always there. So hopefully I [can be] there.”

Seth Harrell announced as new KHS principal Jan. 24

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Q/A with new KHS principal Seth Harrell