Randy Hansen will return to the hallways of Pequot Lakes High School next week as interim high school principal, filling in for a second time while principal Chip Rankin is on military leave.
The school board on Monday, Jan. 12, approved Rankin's military leave effective from about Feb. 2 to Nov. 25, and hired Hansen effective Jan. 19 until Rankin returns.
Hansen is no stranger to students and staff since he worked for the district for six years before retiring in July 2012 after a 35-year career in education. He was Pequot Lakes Middle Level principal, served as interim superintendent and spent most of the last year of his career in education as principal of Pequot Lakes High School while filling in when Rankin was deployed to Afghanistan.
Rankin will deploy with the Army National Guard to western Africa as an Ebola response measure. His six-month tour will take him to Liberia, to join an effort to fight the Ebola outbreak in the area. He will serve as chief of plans in the military headquarters in the capital city of Monrovia - coordinating the schedule and resources of the area - and has said the chances of him even coming into contact with an Ebola patient are fairly low.
