Thumbs up: The Lobo-in-chief steps down

Thumbs up for Mary Gail Stablein, who is retiring after 16 years as principal at Elsie Allen High School in Santa Rosa. During her tenure, the school added new social services and started programs for Lobo students planning to go to college and for students who wanted to go straight into the working world. She also initiated Link Crew and Compact for Success, programs dedicated to helping students make a successful transition from middle school to high school - the first step to college or career. To support those programs and others, Stablein worked closely with the Elsie Allen Foundation, which was founded in 2011 and has raised and distributed more than $400,000 in scholarships and $100,000 for student services, including covering the cost of college-entrance exams for Elsie Allen students.

Stablein leaves a solid foundation for her successor, Gabriel Albavera, who returns to Elsie Allen where he once was vice principal and a counselor.

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