Meet Kingsley High School Principal Chris Rapes

Worth The Drive

Every morning, KHS principal Chris Rapes loads up his all-wheel drive Ford Escape and buckles in for his hour-twenty commute from his home in Walkerville to Kingsley High School. 

Most days, he loves the drive and the chance to clear his head. Over his past three school years, there have been some bumps in the road.

“I smoked a deer, totaled my car, and bought another one. I'm now on my third car. It’s sometimes snowy. But hey, that’s Michigan!” said Principal Rapes. “This place, this school, is so awesome. The drive’s never bothered me.”

Working in Kingsley Area Schools has been a longtime dream of his, and he says working here now is worth the drive. 

Principal Rapes and students at the Powderpuff Football game.

“I love this community. I think a lot of schools want to say they have community pride. Here, I don’t think you can say Kingsley without talking about the schools. They’re intertwined,” 

Over the past three years, Principal Rapes has seen a lot of things to be proud of; championship-winning athletics, award-winning music programs, the inauguration of the school’s NJROTC program, and boosts in academics. 

“We went from losing to the state average to beating the state national averages across the board,” he said, as he spoke about new in-school interventions to help kids with college and SAT prep. 

He is quick to credit his staff for their passion and hard work. 

Assistant Principal Wagatha and Principal Rapes can often be seen rolling around KHS on their mobile desks.

“They are outstanding. They keep me going and I am so thankful for them. I hope parents understand how much hard work they’ve done, especially in the past few years,” said Principal Rapes. 

“We now have kids talking about the future. They're talking about life out in front of them and what they're aspiring to. They are setting goals and reaching them, and I think that's the most rewarding thing, and it has nothing to do with me,” said Principal Rapes.  

“My role, as a principal is to put people in the best position to be the most successful. My job is to build and maintain trust. My job is to also make things easier. And I am constantly striving to get better at that.” 

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To reach out to Principal Rapes, email him at crapes@kingsleyschools.org.