On May 8, it was announced with mixed emotions that Jesse Schuveiller, Sage Creek High School’s Principal will be leaving the school on June 30. He will be taking over as principal at San Marcos High School next year.

Schuveiller has been an integral part of Sage Creek for the past seven years, first serving as vice principal and then, for the last four years, as principal. His first year, 2016, was also the first time Sage Creek had all four classes.

“Since day one, I’ve always felt like part of the Sage Creek family,” Schuveiller said. 

Schuveiller reflects on how far the school has come, looking back to “the first couple of years of  trying to figure out who Sage Creek was, building a new school and students and families taking a risk of sending their kids to a new school with new programs and a new environment.”

Many things have changed since then.

“Where we’re at now, we’ve really started to concrete, 10 years later, who Sage Creek is and really establish ourselves as one of the premier high schools in San Diego and definitely in North County,” Schuveiller said.

His time here was definitely not without challenges, most notably Covid-19.

As a newer principal, navigating the school through the unprecedented pandemic was not easy. Still, Schuveiller says, “I’m very proud of how our community responded to that challenge and the work that was created from that, and is ongoing.”

“I’ve worked at a lot of different high schools in my career over the last 20 years,” he adds.  “And I haven’t always seen that uniqueness of relationships that exist [here].”

Assistant Principal Shannon Harrington has worked closely with Schuveiller since 2019. Her first year as AP was his first year as principal.

 “One of the biggest takeaways is the mantra Be You, Be Your Best,” Harrington said, when asked how Schuveiller has impacted Sage. “And that’s something that principal Shoe has, he says it, he repeats it, it’s infused in the work that we do.”

Freshman Benjamin Foss was surprised that Schuveiller will be leaving.

“I want a principal who’s kind and caring, and like Mr. Shoe walks around helping clean up and caring for students, and making sure that everyone has a great time,” Foss said.

“Anytime a principal leaves or moves on from a school site is a period of transition,” Harrington said. “And while one person moves on, and another comes in, the large majority of people continue on, and continue to carry the core values and the mindset and expectations of what it means to be a Bobcat.”

When asked what legacy he hoped to leave on Sage Creek, Schuveiller acknowledges that only time will tell but says, only half jokingly, “I hope people remember that I cared about our students so deeply that I would lose sleep and hair overnight,” adding, “I think my legacy is just continuing the amazing work that so many of the founding sage Creek staff members started many, many years ago.”

“It comes with a lot of mixed emotions as far as leaving sage Creek. But I know that, you know, Sage Creek will be in great hands, the district will find the next great leader at Sage Creek and continue all the amazing work that we’ve done. And I’m excited for my opportunity to grow in my own career and take on a new challenge,” Schuveiller said