Busy at work: Mrs. Bonnell, the new attendance secretary, answers a call at her desk in the office. A parent called in to let her know about their child’s situation. “It’s important to make sure that everyone is safe, and so that we know where everyone is.”

Mrs. Bonnell is more similar to Tiana, from The Princess and the Frog, than people would think. Mrs. Bonnell is West Lafayette Jr./Sr. High School’s newest attendance secretary. 

“I like to be busy, and this is busy, all day long,”Bonnell said. As the attendance secretary, she doesn’t have a prep hour or study hall, but she embraces the non-stop work. In fact, she doesn’t like being bored.

This might remind some people of Tiana’s work ethic. Tiana is Mrs. Bonnell’s favorite Disney character, and there is a clear resemblance. “I like Tiana because she works really hard to get what she wants. She’s not just a princess that just sits at home,” Bonnell said. 

Tiana also gains new knowledge by looking at life from a different perspective, when she is transformed into a frog. Mrs. Bonnell hasn’t ever looked at life through a frog’s eyes, but the variety of people with which she has worked with has given her insight on many different people’s lives. “I worked at Westminster Village and did events there,” Bonnell said. She enjoyed “getting to know the residents and finding out all the cool things they used to do.” 

Her favorite people to work with so far have been criminals. “I used to work in a jail, and that’s what I did before I became a mom, and that’s where I met my husband, because he’s a police officer,” Bonnell said. She explained that criminals are treated wrongly because the outside world sees them as bad people. This wasn’t the case in Mrs. Bonnell’s experience.

 “I got along really well with the inmates because I treated them how they treated me,” Bonnell  said. 

Mrs. Bonnell’s caring for inmates transfer to students. Even though students can sometimes be a hassle, she is fine with it. “I don’t mind being around people that other people don’t want to be around,” Bonnell said.