Mrs. Barela just finished her 20th year in education, all of which have transpired within the Arizona public school system. Graduating from Northern Arizona University in 2000 she began her career as a high school English teacher at Sunrise Mountain High School where she also coached the spiritline and was a student government class sponsor.  While teaching, she also attended Northern Arizona University and earned her master’s degree in Educational Leadership.  The 13 years in the classroom and two years as an instructional coach were very formative in her growth as an educator as it provided a solid foundation of quality leadership, curriculum, instruction, and decision making. In 2016, she accepted a job as the Assistant Principal at Saguaro High School.  She spent a year at Saguaro over special education, 504’s, student activities, and testing.  In 2017, she was promoted to the Assistant Principal over Educational Services at Chaparral High School.  She has spent the last four years as a Firebird over seniors, AP, the guidance department, graduation, and master scheduling.     

Mrs. Barela said, “I am honored to become a member of the Falcon community.  In the few interactions I have had with faculty, staff, and students it is clear that Cactus Shadows is a great place to be and the sense of community is strong.  I look forward to continuing to make connections with all of you as we move through this next school year.”

On a personal note Mrs. Barela enjoys spending time with her husband and family.  Her oldest daughter will start her journey as a Wildcat in the Fall.  Her other daughter will be a sophomore and her son will be a 3rd grader.  

In closing, Mrs. Barela said, “My focus is to build relationships with the Cactus Shadows learning community.  You will find me out in the mornings, during passing periods and at lunch.  You will see me at school and community events cheering on our Falcons.  Our job is to educate our future.  I will work diligently with our team of teachers, support staff, and district administration to ensure that students leave Cactus Shadows with the education and tools to be successful wherever their dreams and goals take them.”

She’s honored to accept the position of principal of Cactus Shadows High School.  Go Falcons! 

Mr. Schnee is excited to be joining you as your Assistant Principal of Educational Services at Cactus Shadows High School. He is starting his twenty fourth year in public education here in Arizona this fall and has absolutely loved all the experiences along this journey which has brought him here to Cactus Shadows. Recently he was an Assistant Principal in the Glendale School District for the past three years. He has taught in the Cartwright School District, Creighton School District and Deer Valley Unified School District in various roles, including the Mandarin Dual Language Immersion program, Middle School Math and Science Teacher, and High School Algebra Teacher. There are many more things in his professional career he has done that he will share as you see him around campus.

He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Education from Arizona State University and his Master of Education in Counseling from Northern Arizona University. He went back a few years later to earn his Graduate Certificate in Educational Leadershipwhich then lead to him becoming certified as a school Principal in 2011 from Northern Arizona University. As an administrator and teacher leader he has led his schools Professional Learning Communitiy journey to better the staff’s knowledge and understanding of good and effective teaching practices to continue helping our students. 

Before Mr. Schnee began teaching he studied Electrical Engineering at Arizona State University which allowed him to have success in a lot of math and science courses.He has paired his love of Math, Science and Technology to help students over his career and help staff to better reach the needs of the students. He has always prided himself on being able to listen to others and work towards a common goal. In his personal life and professional life he has used the skills learned in his counseling program to help everyone he gets the opportunity to work with. Mr. Schnee has two of his own children who are both graduates from Barry Goldwater High School and showing great success in their individual journeys. Mr. Schnee and his wife have been married for 23 years and she has been a loving, supportive and caring partner this whole time helping him and their family through ups and downs. She was a K-8 educator for over 15 years and was instrumental in helping him early in his education career. He enjoys camping and hiking along with just being outdoors. He runs Spartan Obstacle Course Races where he gets to continously challenge himself and push himself even more which then helps him to see the full potentinal in everyone he meets.

 He looks forward to a great year with each of the students, family, staff and community here at Cactus Shadows High School. Go Falcons!