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HAY RIVER - Paul Theriault sits at his desk in Diamond Jenness Secondary School in Hay River, with a pile of papers in front of him. He became principal of the school Jan. 23 and said he hit the ground with both feet running. That means there's always paperwork to catch up on.

Theriault confides it's his least favourite part of the job.

Paul Theriault takes a break from the paperwork piled on his desk Tuesday to talk about what made him want to become a principal. - Herb Mathisen/NNSL photo

"Administrivia," he says deadpan, picking up a stack and letting it fall on the desk.

Theriault has an extensive background in education that started back in 1982, when he landed his first teaching job in Pangnirtung, Nunavut. The work has taken him across the North: he's worked in Whitehorse, Yukon and Churchill, Manitoba, in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut and Yellowknife.

Over time, Theriault felt the desire to get involved as a principal and has spent about half of his nearly 30 years in education in that administrative role. He said moving into to the position seemed like a logical progression for him.

"In administration, you have more community involvement. Very often, you are the public face of the school," he said.

"You need to develop an understanding of the needs of your school," he said.

Theriault said he enjoys dealing with parents and students, while also balancing the needs of teachers and working with senior board executives.

"It's a question of being able to take a perspective for the whole school, as opposed to the four walls of your classroom," he said.

Theriault likes to influence the direction education takes at the school.

"I think education really belongs to the students. You need to empower them," he said, adding the philosophy of teaching has changed over the course of his 28 years in the field.

"It's a question of teaching the whole child and the whole student," he said.

Today, Theriault said, teachers are more involved in the day-to-day lives and social well-being of their students, as opposed to the old notion of school being strictly about academia from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

He believes the role of the school is to open as many doors as it can for students, and to provide young people with the tools necessary to make reasonable and responsible choices.

Theriault's door isn't closed all day either. He makes a point of teaching at least once class a semester, which allows him to get a sense of the sentiment among students and staff.

"You have to be present in the school," he said. He said he also tries to visit each class once a day - "which is why the paperwork piles up," he joked.

Theriault said his favourite part of the job is dealing with young people, adding he keeps in touch with many of his past students. He said he gets a kick out of bumping into former students after they've completed school and seeing how they are doing.

He said one of his first pupils from Pangnirtung had gone on to do reasonably well for himself.

"A guy named Paul Okalik," he smiled, referencing his former student who became Nunavut's first premier in 1999.

Theriault, once a politician in his own right - he was leader of the Yukon's Liberal Party back in the early 1990s - said this job in Hay River will probably be his last in teaching or administration before retiring "in three or five years."

He said he'd probably still be involved in education, but in a more "relaxed approach," adding he wants to be with his family in the Lloydminster, Sask., area.

He said he's always loved the North, saying he felt his work has more of an impact on the people and the community.

"The pace of life is very different than in the south," he said.

"The challenges are more pronounced but they are easier to get at."

He said he really enjoyed Cambridge Bay - where he worked a little more than a year ago - but it took its toll on him because the community was so far away from everything.

"Here in Hay River, it's the best of both worlds."