Chase Lake students bid farewell to beloved principal

Chase Lake Community School Principal Karen Nilson may be flying the coop, but her students made sure she was honored for being a good egg. Hundreds of students and staff dressed in yellow and orange — many wearing chicken hats and costumes — gathered for a good-bye assembly held Tuesday afternoon in Nilson’s honor.

Why the chicken garb? According to Chase Lake Dean of Students Deanna Silue, when students and staff learned that Nilson — the school’s principal for the past 13 years — was retiring, they wanted to do something fun.  Nilson is known for using chicken puppets as her main characters in the movies she creates for school assemblies, so on Tuesday afternoon, they surprised her. As Nilson sat on a chair in front of the cafeteria, kindergarten- through sixth-grade students came to the microphone to share hand-made greeting cards with chicken themes, accompanied by well wishes and hugs.

At the end of the assembly, Nilson received a standing ovation and, appropriately, the entire room broke out into a chicken dance.

While lauding Nilson for her sense of humor, Silue said the principal has been a strong advocate for all her students, including partnering with the community and staff to support and manage the Safety Net and weekend backpack program that sends food home with students in need.

Nilson came to the Edmonds School District in 1991, where she was hired as an intermediate teacher at Maplewood School. In 1993, she transferred to Madrona School for one year and then moved to the Shoreline School District in the role of an assistant principal.  Nilson returned to Edmonds in 2002 to serve as Chase Lake’s principal.

Added District Assistant Superintendent Justin Irish: “Karen may be physically leaving Chase Lake, but her energy will remain. She left a legacy.”