PRINCIPAL'S BIO

Thank you for checking our website.  My name is Cheryl Forster, I am in my 14th year as Principal and I love my job.  It is always interesting to me how we find ourselves in careers we never envisioned for ourselves —I never set out to be an educator.  I was born in Newton, MA and moved to Waltham where I graduated from high school in 1966.  I entered Northeastern University on the co-op program as a pre-med student. I graduated from the University of Massachusetts in Boston in 1970 with a B.A. in Sociology and Psychology.  Throughout college I worked at Logan Airport as a Passenger Service Representative with Aer Lingus. I had planned to become a Court Probation Officer but the Irish Airlines made me a great offer and I stayed. 

In 1973 we bought a “handyman special” Victorian here in Ipswich and raised three beautiful children as we worked on the house.  As the children grew I was actively involved in the schools and was asked to substitute teach at Doyon School.  I returned to college to be certified to teach and accepted my first position in the Topsfield Schools.  I returned to Ipswich in 1988 as the Gifted and Talented Coordinator in grades K-8 and completed my Master’s Degree at the University of Connecticut.  In 1992 I was asked to go to Ipswich High School as the Acting Assistant Principal.  Later that year I became the Technology Integration Director. During the next exciting three years I helped teachers become comfortable with all the new technologies.  I was asked in August of 1995 to become the temporary principal of the Ipswich Middle School.  I was not very happy about this and agreed only “to open the building in September.”  I guess the rest is history, I have found my home and enjoy every minute in this school.

The planning and building of the new Middle/High School was a once in a lifetime opportunity for me and the results have been more than satisfying. I now live in Rowley on a historic property which was the first fulling mill in the English colonies. I am happily married to Barry Cahill the principal of Ipswich High School which creates a really unique and cooperative working as well as personal relationship between the two schools. We have four grown sons and a daughter. I was honored this year as I was named the Massachusetts Middle School Principal of the Year.  I consider this recognition to be a reflection of the caring people I work with.  My passions include house restoration, perennial gardening, traveling, and the fascinating lives of our growing family.