Prized principal to end career at school where he earned degree — Bothell High

Who: Al Haynes, principal of Bothell High School.

The skinny: Haynes is retiring at the end of next month after 11 years as principal of the school. But he'd been a veteran of these halls long before he walked in with the top job. In addition to serving as vice principal in the early '80s, Haynes graduated from the school in 1963.

"I watched this building being built when I was a kid," he said. "I never thought I'd end up back here."

Bothell roots: Haynes grew up about a block down the street from the place he spent much of his career. His grandfather, Pop Keeney, was a member of one of the original Bothell families as well as being its first football coach, earning him the namesake athletic field. Haynes and his family still live in the area, and if his 15-month-old grandson stays put, he too will attend his grandpa's high school.

Evolution of a principal: For Haynes, all roads begin, pause and end in Bothell, the longtime hometown of both his family and career. After graduating from high school, Haynes headed off to Pullman to attend WSU, where he majored in English, and then moved back west to teach the subject at Shoreline High School.

In 1979, it was back to Bothell for a three-year stint as vice principal before the Northshore superintendent asked him to head up nearby Inglemoor High School. He was principal there for 13 years, and was honored by the state Legislature with the Principal of the Year award.

Another superintendent — he's worked for five over the years — asked him to return to Bothell in 1992, closing the circle. Walking back into the school might have seemed easy to one who'd been there and back, but Haynes wasn't about to take his familiarity with the place for granted.

"I was really nervous," he said. "I wasn't sure how they were going to react."

He needn't have worried. The warm and dedicated Haynes was well-received at his alma mater from that first staff meeting to the one at which he announced his retirement.

During that time, he's been weathering the ups and downs of budget crunches, rapid growth and all the balancing that comes with keeping parents, staffers and more than 1,500 students happy each year. The secret? "I listened a lot," he said. "I was always trying to get people to look at new ideas and ways of improving."

The announcement: Some folks can point to a single moment in their career where the sense of pride and accomplishment were palpable. For Haynes, that moment came every year as his students graduated.

He announced his own "graduation" from Bothell High School to staff just last week.

"I didn't expect so many tears," Haynes said. "It almost made me think I shouldn't do it, but it's time."

Assistant principals Bob Stewart and Heather Miller will replace him as interim co-principals.

The what-next: At 57, Haynes isn't quite ready to go gently into retirement. ("I don't like gardening all that much.") He plans to spend a little quality time with his hobbies of old car tinkering and boat repair, but even more with wife Carol, his junior-high-school sweetheart.

"After encouraging others for so long to learn new things, it's time for me to do that," he said.

— Lisa Heyamoto