Janice Fipp needs meaningful work and prayer

Janice Fipp tried to retire once, but it didn’t work out.

“Meaningful work is what I need in my life,” said Fipp, principal at Saint Joseph Regional School in Somers Point. “And this for me is meaningful work.”

Fipp came to Saint Joseph in 2017 with a lifetime of preparation and a bounty of faith — everything she needed for her first full-time job in a Catholic school. 

A leader in Northfield public school system for more than 20 years, Fipp retired as superintendent. She said she loved her Northfield career, but she appreciates that, at Saint Joseph “We can talk about our spirituality. We can employ God as a community. I went through 9-11 and couldn’t say a prayer [at school].”

She is especially grateful for the relationship she has with Saint Joseph pastor Father Jaromir Michalak, “We speak the same language. We understand that our communities are so important. He will do anything to make [people] feel comfortable and to meet their needs,” she said.

Fipp, a longtime, active member of Saint Gianna Beretta Molla Parish in Northfield, grew up in Margate. She attributes her faith and love of learning to her family.

“We might have been in Margate, but we didn’t have a penny,” said Fipp. She described the small bedroom where she and her sister shared a bed, and her brother slept on a trundle.

“My father, would sit on the edge of our bed every single night and he’d read Edward Lear, Eugene Field, Christina Rossetti … all the poets. It was a gift.” Fipp said she can still recite the countless poems she learned as a child.

Nearby, her grandparents’ basement was filled with large blackboards and relief maps — a contribution from her uncle, who bought them at a pre-demolition sale when Ventnor rebuilt its schools.  

“There are seven cousins. And I was always the teacher,” Fipp said.

Her first paid teaching job was in Linwood, where she taught and loved fourth graders for seven years. Her career took an unexpected detour when a master’s degree in curriculum led to training casino workers in the booming gaming industry in Atlantic City. Her curriculum was as varied as customer service for dealers and cage cashiers, English as a second language, and training for senior executives.

Nine years later, married with two young children, Fipp was ready to go back to public school education. During her years as a principal in Northfield, she added a doctorate to her credentials, which she paid for by training casino executives on the side. She taught (and continues to teach) part-time at Rutgers as well.

Fipp said she wouldn’t change a thing.

“It’s been such a good career. I’ve loved every bit of it. He’s got my back,” she said, pointing to a crucifix in her office. “He really speaks to me. He’s really laid out my life.”

When it was clear retirement wasn’t for Fipp, she began substitute teaching at Saint Joseph. She recalls meeting then Superintendent of Catholic Schools Mary Boyle to talk about the principal opening.

“I’ll never forget Mary said, ‘You know, Janice, you’re used to public school, where you have a business manager, you have a facilities director. You have to do everything in [a Catholic school].’ I didn’t tell her how hands-on I am,” said Fipp.

What Fipp has found is that everyone does everything at Saint Joseph, and she loves that about the community. She said one of the great rewards of the past six months is the enhanced relationship between and among teachers, staff members and families. “It’s a gift that comes to me over and over again. That relationship is stronger than it’s ever been.”

Fipp believes communication is key to being an effective school leader. “I like to talk with people directly. I learn what we have to do better. I learn what you’re concerned about.” This summer she has often been at school until 7 or 8 at night on the phone with families. “That’s what makes us different. I can make the time to do that,” she said.

Like other school principals, Fipp has worked all summer and been conscientious about social distancing. Even with her daughter, who lives down the street, visits are outside only. She recognizes the importance of self-care. 

“I absolutely know my body,” she said. “You put a good biscotti in front of me and I’m gone. I’ll eat 17 of them — I know myself. I cannot accomplish what I need to accomplish right now without being healthy. And the only way I can be healthy is to exercise at least 30 minutes a day and eat properly … and watch ‘Homeland’ every night.

“I have an amazing family. The four of us — my immediate family, my children and my husband. I have a sister and a brother who are just gifts to my life.” Fipp also has her elementary school girlfriends, with whom she often exercises on Zoom. “My girlfriends are a great comfort to me,” she said.

Fipp is eager to start the new school year in person with her Saint Joseph family.

“My greatest hope and my prayer is that God holds each one of our Saint Joseph families, their children, their friends, our teachers our staff members, every one of us very closely so that we each have good health and we are each at peace. That’s my prayer over and over and over again.”