Jeffery Haines joined Belmont Public Schools as the principal of Butler Elementary School earlier this month.
Haines most recently served as the principal of Washington Elementary School in Lowell. He was previously an assistant principal in Lowell and Derry, New Hampshire.
“I’m excited to again work collaboratively with staff and with families to make it a positive environment,” Haines said.
He officially took over from interim principal Beth Nolan on July 6.
The son of an elementary school teacher, Haines first started in the classroom right after high school as an intern. He went on to major in elementary education at Franklin Pierce University and eventually worked as a teacher in Marlborough with his mother.
“It was something that I could see myself doing. I had worked at camps through summers when I was in high school, and I saw the positive impact my mother was having with kids, and so I thought, ‘That’s a good fit for me,’” he said.
A native of Westborough, Haines started his career at New England Center for Children in Framingham and has also taught in Boston and North Carolina. In addition to his classroom experience, Haines previously served as the human resources director for Marlborough Public Schools.
As both an educator and now a leader in an elementary school, Haines values getting to know students and families face-to-face.
“I pride myself on getting out and greeting people. I think that’s very important. Whether it’s rain, whether it’s snow, whether it’s 95 degrees, I think it’s a nice way to be able to connect on a personal level,” he said.
For Haines, educational leadership can only be as strong as the relationships built within it.
“The more you build relationships, the better the school functions,” he said, “…when you have that connection, it makes it a lot easier. If you have a kid who’s struggling with whatever they may be struggling with, to be able to refer to them by name, know something about them, it goes a long way in building that sense of community.”
As he looks ahead to the start of the 2026-27 school year on Sept. 2, Haines said he wants Butler students to go on to upper elementary school and beyond with more than just academic knowledge.
“I think beyond just reading, science, or social studies, it’s much more than that. We want to make sure that kids have the ability to think critically, to know how to work collaboratively with groups. I think those are all important skills,” he said.
