The Uncas School in Norwich’s new principal is nine-year system veteran and town native Peter Camp.

Nine-year system veteran Peter Camp planning to get to know community

Norwich — Although school ended two weeks ago for the summer, newly appointed Uncas School Principal Peter Camp plans to spend the next couple of months getting to know the students and families in the close-knit neighborhood school district.

Camp, a nine-year veteran Norwich teacher and assistant principal, was named Tuesday as the new principal of the Uncas School by Superintendent Abby Dolliver.

He succeeds former principal Jason Foster, who left to become Windham High School principal.

Camp, who grew up in Norwich, taught special education in Norwich schools for his first six years in the system, then became assistant principal for two years at Teachers’ Memorial Middle School and last year at Kelly Middle School.

His wife, Amanda Camp, also is a special education teacher in Norwich.

The couple has two young sons: Andrew, 4, and Keegan, 1.

‘Exciting opportunity’

“It’s a very exciting opportunity with a long tradition of excellence,” Camp said.

“I’m very humbled to be able to lead this school and work with the staff, the students and the Uncas families. Under the leadership of Jason Foster, they’ve transformed the school in terms of staff and the structure of the school. I’m just hoping to build off what Jason started.”

Dolliver said a team of two Uncas School teachers, a parent, two Board of Education members, a school administrator and herself interviewed six internal candidates for the position.

She said the group was impressed by Camp’s responses to 13 key questions on how he would work with school staff, the state Department of Education, students and parents.

Uncas School was named a state Commissioner’s Network School, receiving additional state grant money for programing and staffing and state capital improvements grants.

Uncas, located off Elizabeth Street, serves many low-income families on the west side, including in nearby public housing complexes.

The school was transformed from the 1960s-era, so-called “open classroom” structure with vast open spaces on each floor into a more traditional classroom setting with walls and divided rooms.

This spring, school officials submitted an application to LEARN, the regional education agency, seeking $350,000 per year for three years in federal magnet school funding to become a history and culture magnet school.

Camp said he is “eager” to work with Dolliver and the Uncas staff to implement the magnet school concept if the grant is awarded this fall.

Until then, Camp said he wants to make himself known in the neighborhood by attending community and neighborhood events, and maybe making home visits to get to know Uncas School families.

“I’ll be making myself visible so when they walk in the door on opening day, they’ll see a familiar face, and I’ll see some familiar faces,” Camp said.