Mexico Schools Hires New Assistant Principal at Eugene Field Elementary

The Mexico School District is announcing the hiring of a new Assistant Principal at the Eugene Field Elementary School for the upcoming school year.

Jennifer Caine will officially start her duties in July, 2022.

She is currently a health teacher at Rock Bridge High School in Columbia.

Mrs. Caine is in her 17th year of education. The last 11 years have been with Columbia Public Schools. Prior to this year, she spent 10 years at Oakland Middle School where she taught 6-8 grade PE and Health, filled the role of PE Department Chair, coached 7-8 grade Girls Basketball and served as the Athletic Director. Before coming to Columbia Public Schools, Mrs. Caine taught 6-8 grade Science and was the Varsity Girls Basketball coach for Pilot Grove Public Schools. She has also taught 7th grade Science and coached 7th grade Girls Basketball in her hometown of Eldon, MO.

Mrs. Caine has a BS in Nursing from University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, a Masters in Teaching from UCM, and holds an MED in K-12 Administration from William Woods University in Fulton. She is a member of the Missouri State Teachers Association, Missouri Society of Health and Physical Educators, Missouri Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association, and Missouri Association of Elementary School Principals.

Educations is Mrs. Caine’s second career. Originally, she went to school and earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing. She worked as a surgical nurse on the open-heart surgical team at St. Mary’s Hospital in Jefferson City until the premature birth of her second daughter. She left nursing to provide care for her at home. When her daughter was old enough to start early childhood education, Mrs. Caine realized, through that process, how much of an advocate she would need to be for her. This convinced Mrs. Caine that all children need advocates in their corner fighting for them to have the best chance for success, and she wanted to be that advocate for them. Mrs. Caine decided to make the career switch and went back to school, earning a Master of Arts in teaching and has been in education ever since. She says, “It has been the most challenging and yet rewarding decision I have made. I love building strong, positive relationships with my students and supporting them through their educational journeys.”

Mrs. Caine is married to her wife, Ashanti, also an educator. They have 3 children: Daughter, Kelsey (22), Son, JR (15), and Daughter, Dache` (2). They are also expecting twins in July. Mars. Caine loves spending time with family and friends. She loves going to Cardinals’ baseball games and is a die-hard Chiefs fan. She loves to play basketball and golf and go to the movies. She and her family also love to travel to the beach.

Mrs. Caine said, “I am extremely excited, humbled, and honored to be joining the Eugene Field Family. I look forward to bringing my experience and enthusiasm to the dedicated and passionate staff and faculty at Eugene Field. I am so excited to partner with the community, staff, and parents to help our students at Eugene Field Elementary School continue to experience high levels of growth and success.”

Mrs. Pezley, who will be moving from Assistant Principal to Principal of Eugene Field next year, said, “We are eager for Mrs. Caine to join our team. She brings a ton of energy to any room she is in. Relationships with students, families, and colleagues have been an extremely important part Mrs. Caine’s 17 years in education, and we can’t wait for her to bring that to our Eugene Field school family.”