Seymour High School students are having to continue their school year without their beloved principal, Mr. Prange, the man who encouraged every student to push themselves and reach their goals. Mr. Greg Prange retires as SHS Principal on October 31, 2023, after 40 years in education. SHS students have enjoyed seeing him dance and laugh at Mr. Fife’s jokes on the announcements. They have loved seeing his big smile in the morning in front of the office, the place where his memory will always be. SHS students recently shared their love and appreciation for our amazing principal.
The student body describes him as knowledgeable, considerate, loving, brave, funny, caring, and so much more. Katherine Veatch remembered, “I was touring SHS as an incoming freshman from a much smaller school. I was afraid of how many kids I had heard were packed into one lunch and remember him saying that here, you had much more freedom than where I was coming from, and there weren’t any traffic lights in the cafeteria to hold me back. He also gave me an owl cookie.” Claire Urbanski says he made the school feel like a second home. In fact, she shared that “When I first met Mr. Prange as a little girl, [he] gave me the really fun uncle feeling.”
When the announcements were changed to a video three years ago, many students got the chance to get to know Mr. Prange’s personality. One student shares what the announcements are like with Mr. Prange, “He’s very lighthearted and goofy when he wants to be. His jokes haven’t been exactly what I expected but they’ve given me a new perspective on his personality.” Students got to see who Mr. Prange is as a person and not just their principal. Students also share that while the announcements are awkward and can make them feel nervous, Mr.Prange’s smile and funny jokes made those feelings go away. Elise Hartung was nervous about being asked to see Mr. Prange, but his comforting attitude eased the situation: “First, he called me into his office for National Merit Semifinalist. I was terrified because I didn’t know exactly why, but he greeted me with a big smile, and l knew everything was okay.” Ava Shuler had a similar experience to Elise because “Mr. Prange always made the awkwardness/nerves of the announcements go away. He made the accounts a memorable experience.” Many students love hearing Mr. Prange’s Catchphrase on the announcements every day. Brooke Knieriem found herself saying “Speaking of lunch” outside of school, “I say it outside of school now all the time when referring to any meal.”
Mr. Prange is not only humorous but also very kind-hearted. He showed his kindness to Landon Bowman when “It wasn’t much but it was a small action by Mr. Prange which made my day better, It was pouring down rain after school one day and I had to walk home then, Mr. Prange was at the door I was leaving out of and I stood there with him waiting for the rain to clear when it never did, He decided to offer me his umbrella to make the walk home easier so my clothes didn’t get soaked from the rain.” Students say it means the world when he recognizes them in the hallway, says good morning or gives them his friendly smile.
Mr. Prange makes everyone feel like they belong no matter who they are and what their story is. “When I had my IEP meeting [and] he was supposed to be there, he was running a little bit late, so we went ahead and started, and when we finished, he walked in saying, “I’m here,” but then we told him we just finished, and then [he] said, “Hope I helped with being here,” Michael Sandefur recollects. They know when they walk through the doors in the morning, they have a principal who cares for them. Isaac Fletcher acknowledges that “He’s inspired me to keep pushing myself to better and better goals, to work toward my objectives and that one day I’ll finally reach them.” The SHS students know they have someone who cares to see them succeed in school and in life. Brayleigh Hayes, FFA member, loved “Seeing him and his happy family sitting down in their lawn chairs watching as the Seymour FFA [Oktoberfest] parade went through and seeing him smile and wave at all of us.” Mr. Prange loves supporting SHS students.
He not only made SHS feel special while he was principal but also when he was a coach and teacher. Many students grew up hearing stories about Mr. Prange from family members. Isaac Fletcher remembers hearing about when Mr. Prange was the football coach: “Used to coach football at the high school when my dad went here.” Mr. Prange has been changing the lives of students not just these past years as principal, but for multiple decades. The students have also had the chance to create memories with Mr. Prange just like their parents did. “I was so happy we were able to honor and dedicate one of our home game themes to him last year during Prange Night. All of the donations transferred directly to the local cancer center and everyone came to support him in their best Hawaiian apparel. He was recognized and we all gave him fist bumps,” recalled Katherine Veatch, senior Lady Owl volleyball athlete.
Senior, Elise Hartung, describes Mr. Prange as “A pillar of SHS. I do not know what we will do without his guidance and constant reassuring presence.” Seymour High School wouldn’t be the same without this amazing man. However, Mr. Prange taught the students to keep going through the hardest times. They also know that even though he is not in the building with them, he is still cheering for every single one of them, not just in high school but for eternity!
We hope you have a Super Duper Ice Cream Scooper Retirement! Your SHS family loves you!
We thank and wish you the best, Mr. Prange:
“Thanks so much for everything you’ve done! You will be remembered and revered at SHS forever.” (Elise Hartung)
“Le deseo que disfrute y siga con una sonrisa siendo feliz.” (Kenia Marcos)
“I hope everything goes well : )” (Michael Sandefur)
“For everything he has done for all of us, for all the years that he had to deal with all of the students and their bad behavior, through the school’s ups and downs he stayed persistent and cheered for us and all the stress that he had to handle, we thank him for everything he did from what we know and what we don’t.” (Loida Gaspar)
“Good luck with your retirement and I wish you well on whatever adventures you take.” (Isaac Fletcher)
“Dear Mr. Prange, Thank you. Thank you for just being here. I don’t think I’ve ever had an actual conversation with you, but I feel like I don’t need to. I didn’t need to talk to you to smile when you congratulated me on my artwork. I didn’t need to talk with you to come up with the nickname “Prang-O-Tang.” I didn’t need to talk to you to wish you well when you got sick. When you were going through treatment the first time, the school newspaper staff and I sent you a stuffed animal. An owl. I was the one that bought it. It was my idea to send it to you. I saw it at a craft show and my first thought was of you and what you were going through. I couldn’t leave without it after that. I don’t blame you for retiring. You’ve been through a lot. You’re going through a lot. You’re going to go through a lot. I just never expected to graduate without you here. I guess we’re both leaving the school earlier than we expected though. I didn’t plan on graduating halfway through my senior year until the tail end of my junior year. Now here we are; both of us preparing for something we never imagined coming this soon. A month feels like a week, a week feels like a day, and a day goes by in the blink of an eye. Thankfully though, a deep breath still feels like a moment outside of time. Let’s not forget to breathe, Mr. Prange.” (Brooke Knieriem)
“Thank you for being our principal.” (Treyton Hess)
“Thank you for being our principal. We will miss you.” (Machary Polite)
“Thank you for making the school better. You have made a school fun to go to every day as a freshman. Well wishes and have a good retirement.” (Lauren Schepman)
“I wish Mr. Prange the best life imaginable, and for his family. Thank you to Mr. Prange for being a great principal.” (Claire Urbanski)
“Thank you for making the school a welcoming environment and for dedicating your life to serving your coworkers and former and present students. “ (Aubriana Engle)
“I thank him for being the principal and hope he enjoys his retirement. “ (Jonny Cox)
“For staying with the SHS community for so long and for being the best principal.” (Christian Scott)
“Thank you Mr. Prange for being a great role model for Seymour High School and creating an enjoyable school atmosphere. I wish you the best!” (Ava Sunbury)
“Thank you for being a great principal.” (Trista Wishmeier)
“My well wishes to Mr. Prange are for him to have a very safe and happy retirement. I hope he gets to spend as much family time as possible. It is so sad to see him leave, but it is his time to shine! I hope he has the best time out of school!! Thank you for being such a great principal and making SHS so much better, watching over your students and staff, and making sure that they had a safe school system. We love you!!” (Brayleigh Hayes)
“Thank you for being a good principal, you made the school a much better place with all of your morning announcements, the changes to the school, and your interactions with students. We all will miss you and we wish you the best!” (Landon Bowman)
“Thank You for everything, Mr. Prange! Congrats!” (Jed Findley)
“Thank you Mr. Prange for always caring about your students. It means a lot that you will do anything to help your students and make opportunities for the students. “ (Alysa Cassell)
“Thank you very much for everything, we will always thank you for everything you did in Seymour High School and for the Latinos, too, thank you.” (Angel Gomez)
“Thank you for the past years for being a great principal.” (Landen Lubker)
“For being an amazing principal.” (Kylie Campbell)
“I have so much respect for him, as a principal and a person alike. He listens, accepts, and cares for all of his students and staff and has been the best role model to so many hearts, including my own. Seymour won’t be the same without him, and I wish him nothing but the best in his season of retirement.” (Katherine Veatch)
