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Aspen Elementary School to welcome news principal

Erica Robbie
The Aspen Times
The Aspen School District announced Thursday that Christopher Basten, pictured, will take over as the elementary school principal following Doreen Goldyn's retirement.
Erica Robbie/The Aspen Times |

Chris Basten, a principal at Madison Elementary School in Skokie, Illinois, will take over as the Aspen Elementary School principal following Doreen Goldyn’s retirement next week.

Aspen School District Superintendent John Maloy announced the district’s decision at the Board of Education meeting Thursday as well as in a newsletter he sent later that afternoon.

Along with Basten’s current principal experience, he has served as the assistant principal at Kimball Hill Elementary School in Meadows, Illinois, and also as a third- and fourth-grade teacher at Hubbard Woods Elementary School in Winnetka, Illinois.



During a May 20 interview with The Aspen Times, Basten said he would make a good principal at Aspen Elementary because his educational values and beliefs align with those of the Aspen School District.

Some of the shared goals he identified are “valuing importance to the whole child, differentiating instruction to meet the needs of all learners and global citizenry.”




The future Aspen Elementary principal also noted his love of the outdoors, which he believes is “very, very important for our students to experience.”

Basten’s outside hobbies include hiking, biking and running as well as competing in marathons and triathlons.

“My goal is to create an environment where students love to learn. Elementary school should be fun,” Basten said in a school newsletter that was sent Thursday. “I want the students to look back at their time at Aspen Elementary School and think, ‘That was great and I loved being there.’”

Basten has a 20-year-old daughter who is a junior at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois.

He will relocate to Aspen in early July, Maloy said at the meeting.

“We’re anxious to welcome him and get him on board,” Maloy said.

At Thursday’s meeting, the school board also said farewell to Goldyn, who was a member of the Aspen School District for 26 years.

Aspen school board President Susan Marolt articulated her appreciation for Goldyn’s “comforting demeanor and presence in the lives of our youth,” and thanked the principal for her impact on the school.

“It’s been an honor to serve this district and this community,” Goldyn responded. “That’s all I can say. So thank you.”

erobbie@aspentimes.com