Edsel Ford High School Principal Steps Down

After five years as principal of Dearborn's , Hassane Jaafar is stepping down from his post, but he will be staying within the Dearborn Public Schools as part of its Central Office.

District spokesman David Mustonen said Jaafar has given the school a sense of direction in his time at Edsel.

“He came over to Edsel Ford and was able to–in his five years there–put a solid plan into place that will allow that school to continue to move forward, to continue to progress,” Mustonen said.

Jaafar did an especially good job connecting the diverse community that attends Edsel Ford, he added.

“There’s an Arab-American population there, there’s a non-Arab population, there’s an African American population there, there’s a social-economic population there that has changed over the years,” Mustonen said. “More students who are economically disadvantaged have come to the school over the years.”

He added, however, that an increase in economically disadvantaged students has been seen at all schools in Dearborn.

Jaafar could not immediately be reached for comment.

A replacement for Jaafer is expected to found by “mid-to-late July,” Mustonen said, but at least by August. 

“You have to find somebody who will be able to work with staff,  be able work with parents and, of course, obviously relate to students–it will be difficult,” Mustonen said.

Nonetheless, per the standard of Dearborn Public Schools, the search for a replacement will be national, Mustonen said, and quality will not come at the expense of expediency.

“We’re not going to sacrifice quality to just try … to meet a deadline.”

In addition to Jaafar’s departure, multiple elementary school principals are leaving or taking new positions within Dearborn Public Schools.

According to a press release from the district, , , , and elementary schools will all have new principals starting this fall.

The exiting principals of Cotter, Becker and William Ford are shifting to the principal positions at McDonald, William Ford and Miller, respectively. Currently, there are vacancies at Cotter, Becker and Edsel Ford.