Announcements are sent out every day at the high school, but most people don’t stop and think about who puts them together. That job would belong to the high school’s new secretary, Cheryl Shockley. Shockley began working at the high school Oct. 4. Shockley is responsible for attendance, scheduling, sending out announcements, and truancies.

Before taking the job at the school, Shockley worked for Douglas County for 20 years. When Covid-19 pandemic hit, Shockley was temporarily laid off and was going to retire. However, when she saw the opening for the secretary position, she was eager to apply.

“I just wanted a change in environment and I always wanted to work for the school district,” Shockley said.

So far, Shockley has loved her job working here and enjoys seeing students each day. Shockley can be seen every morning with a welcoming smile on her face. Even though Shockley is new to the school staff, the secretary position she applied for has always been filled. 

“We have a new person, but this is not a new position,” principal Rick Flaherty said.

Before Shockley was hired, Terri Van Ert had the position and would send out the daily announcements. Van Ert began working for the School District in April 2003. Van Ert has now transitioned to take the job as the school treasurer and has continued working in the main office. 

Whenever there is an opening for a job in the school district it is uploaded on the Wisconsin Education Career Access Network. Despite the openings being posted there, there is somewhat of a struggle to find applicants.

“In general it’s a challenge to get more than a handful of applicants for any position. We are super happy Ms. Shockley has joined our staff,” Flaherty said.

According to the Federal Bureau of Labor statistics the job outlook for secretaries from 2020 to 2030 is expected to drop by 7% losing about 226,200 secretaries. Even though the job outlook is decreasing there is an estimated 324,300 secretary positions available in the United States. 

Outside of being a secretary, Shockley also does real estate investigations and during the summer works at the Poplar Golf Course.