Carver Middle School underwent an unexpected change recently when it got a new principal.
Principals Anthony McLaurin and Jason Trueblood were administratively switched in January, with the former heading to Carver and the latter going to the Chesterfield Juvenile Detention Home.
McLaurin was the principal at the detention home for 18 months before coming to Carver. He was previously an assistant principal in Richmond and at Thomas Dale High School.
He has been in education for 13 years after earning a bachelor’s degree in political science from Hampton University and master’s and doctorate degrees in educational leadership from Virginia State University.
McLaurin has also taught in Culpeper, Bon Air and Hanover County, predominantly with the Department of Juvenile Justice, which challenged him to build his skills and the mental toughness needed to deal with students from all walks of life.
McLaurin said he enjoys working with middle school students because they are at an impressionable age and can be molded for the future.
“It’s the middle school age that typically makes or breaks where they’re [going to]go as far as their decision making in life,” McLaurin said. “So just to have that solid imprint and impact on students and their future, I think it’s critical at the middle school age level.”
“I just want Carver to be a place that students and staff look forward to getting up and coming to every day,” he added.
The students are what he loves the most about his job.
“Every day, they say something that I really genuinely learn from or genuinely just cracks me up or reminds me of myself,” he said. “Or you see that twinkle in their eyes when there may have been a bad decision that was made, but you can talk to them one-on-one, and you can see the growth in them.”
