GET TO KNOW HER

Mrs. Boyd was born and raised in Central Illinois and is proud to say she was a member of the FIRST graduating class from Normal West High School. Mrs. Boyd has received three degrees from Illinois State University (Go Redbirds!), Bachelors of Music Education, Master of Music Education and a Master of Science in Educational Administration. Currently she is working on a Doctorate in Teaching and Learning also through ISU.

With over 20 years of experience in education, Mrs. Boyd is excited to return to Evans Jr. High school as Principal. Her prior teaching experiences include teaching orchestra in Unit 5 schools (most recently Normal West) and a brief amount of teaching at the collegiate level. Starting in Unit 5 in 2001 Mrs. Boyd has loved getting to know the amazing students, teachers and families in Unit 5.

Outside of school Mrs. Boyd is currently serving as the International President of Delta Omicron, a professional music fraternity and on the board of directors for the Professional Fraternity Association. Still wanting to be involved in music Mrs. Boyd serves at her church as the director of instrumental music for worship services.

Mrs. Boyd married her high school sweetheart Chad Boyd and they live in Normal with their two sons, Killian and Cohen who also attend Unit 5 Schools. Mr. Boyd is employed by Centec Systems in Bloomington, Illinois. As a family they love some friendly board game competition and traveling when time (and money) allows. The Boyds currently have 2 cats and an adorable Chi-Weenie at home.

IN JUNIOR HIGH

The ironic part of Mrs. Boyd working at a junior high is that she did NOT LOVE junior high. Shocking right? Her favorite class was definitely orchestra and she loved meeting new people, but overall, not her best years, and definitely not her best hair styles. She loves working to make sure the students she meets have the opposite experience and find something to love about their own junior high experience. Fun fact - Mrs. Boyd actually went to junior high with her husband!

GET TO KNOW HIM

Mr. Papoccia Grew up in Sterling, IL where he attended Newman Central Catholic High School. He graduated from Illinois State University with a Bachelor's degree in Kinesiology.  After college, he lived and worked in Chicago for Advocate Fitness, where he managed corporate fitness centers in the city. He went back to school in 2009 and received his Master’s degree and teaching certification in Special Education from Northeastern Illinois University.  Mr. Papoccia moved to the Bloomington area and began his teaching career at Clinton High School.  He started teaching in Unit 5 shortly after at Chiddix Junior High School, where he spent 6 years teaching.  After Chiddix, he moved over to Normal Community High school, where he has spent the past 5 years teaching.  Mr. Papoccia has been active in coaching while in Unit 5, having been the head 7th grade basketball coach at Chiddix for 7 years, Coaching various levels of football at Normal Community for 9 years, and was also the Chess coach at Chiddix for a couple of years as well. 

This past year, Mr. Papoccia was able to complete a Principal Internship at Evans and Kingsley Junior High as he completed his administration degree.  He feels very lucky to now be working at the Evans Junior High School as the Associate Principal.

Mr. Papoccia and his wife(Melissa) have 2 wonderful children: a son(Kade) and a daughter(Kyla). He loves spending time with his kids watching them in their activities and playing with their dog(Walter) at home.  In his free time, he loves to golf and watch his favorite sports teams (Bears, Bulls, Blackhawks and White Sox) compete.

IN JUNIOR HIGH 

My favorite school subject was History and I did not enjoy Math class! I enjoyed playing basketball and football for our school teams and was very focused on improving my skills back then.  I was also a pretty shy kid during those days, but I learned to come out of my shell and became more comfortable putting myself out there by the time I was ready to head to high school.  Junior High can be some difficult years and I plan on using my experiences to help the students at Evans to manage them as best they can so that they come out on the other side the best versions of themselves.

GET TO KNOW HER

Sarah has been an educator for 14 years and is currently a guidance counselor at Evans. Her career pathway is diverse, spending seven years as a naval officer, then working as a clinical counselor and most recently as a school counselor.

Sarah earned her Bachelors of Science in Psychology from Iowa State University and her Master’s in Clinical Counseling from the University of North Florida. She completed her School Counseling certification from Northern Illinois University and her Administrative certification from Towson University in Maryland.

Sarah and her husband, Josh, moved from Maryland five years ago when Josh retired from the Navy. Moving to Illinois allowed Sarah, Josh and their three children: Hanah, Jakob and Elaina to be in closer proximity to their families. In her free time, Sarah enjoys any activity that involves being outdoors, trying new recipes, and gathering with family and friends. 

IN JUNIOR HIGH