During OHS’s holiday assembly Dec. 19, it was announced that Haney had been named the principal of the year by the Utah Association of Secondary School Principals, or UASSP.

“We have hundreds of secondary schools in the state of Utah.” UASSP Executive Director Rhonda Bromley said at the assembly. “But we only had one high school principal of the year. And it’s your principal, Mrs. Haney.”

Haney told the Standard-Examiner on Tuesday that she has been working in education for 30 years, with the majority being spent in the Davis School District.

“I have been in the Ogden School District since 2018,” she said. “This is my seventh year at Ogden High. My first two years, I was an assistant principal — my principal was Luke Rasmussen, (who) is the person I followed over to Ogden, and he is now our superintendent. This is my fifth year as the principal.”

She said she was shocked to be honored by UASSP but acknowledged those who made it a possibility.

“What a pleasant surprise,” she said. “I just know there’s so many great people out there and so many great leaders I continue to learn from today. … I have leaders within my own district that are very strong that I feel like we make a great team.”

This isn’t the only time in recent years that school administrators from the Ogden School District have been recognized by the UASSP.

According to an Ogden School District press release about Haney’s recognition, it is noted that the district has seen four administrators recognized in seven years. Haney was one of three administrators from Ogden High School recognized in that time frame, along with Rasmussen when he was principal in 2018-2019 and Heather Gerrard, who was named assistant principal of the year for the 2020-2021 school year.

“I think Luke really started something great,” Haney said. “Then when Heather was assistant principal of the year, I think it continued to carry on. I think we have such a strong team. We all have our strengths, and I feel like we play to those strengths so that we can spread out and have impactful programs in our school.”

She said it’s ultimately the faculty who have helped garner so many recent recognitions for Ogden High School.

“Our programs are successful because of the people we have,” she said. “My faculty, I don’t know if I’ve ever loved a group of teachers more, and I think probably the No. 1 reason is how much we love our students. We want what’s best for them, and my teachers, no matter what, will get on board to try and prepare these kids for the future. That’s our vision and our mission — to get these kids ready for life and what we can do to prepare them for what’s to come. I’m just grateful for all of the people in my building that all have a specific role, and because they do those roles so well, I think our programs are successful.”

The fourth administrator in the Ogden School District recognized by the UASSP in the last seven years was now-retired Dale Wilkinson, who was principal of Ben Lomond High School when he was recognized as principal of the year for the 2017-2018 school year.