When Karen Vogtner was a student at St. John the Evangelist Catholic School in Hapeville, she never dreamed she would one day be the principal.

The Peachtree City resident has begun her first year as the leader at St. John, after serving as a teacher and assistant principal.

"There's a lot of heart and meaning in being back here," she says. "I know the Lord's hand is in it; this is a calling." Karen and her husband John both attended St. John, as have their sons, Zachary and Patrick, who are now at Georgia Tech and St. Pius High School, respectively.

The couple's parents, Geneva and the late Edward Ponatoski and Frank and Betty Vogtner, were some of the "founding families" of the parish, Karen says. The school is "very much a family affair," she adds.

St. John now has about 273 students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade, the principal notes, who are "very multicultural, and from all walks of life." Heritages of the children include Nigerian, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Filipino and Cuban, as well as Euro-American, she said.

"We do a lot with culture," she says, "so that we demonstrate we are all God's children and we should celebrate our varied cultures as our gifts. We often pick a country somewhere in the world and examine things like social justice issues in that country. It's very enlightening for all of us."

Vogtner started teaching in 1976, first in Charleston,S.C., where John was stationed. She taught classes for those with learning disabilities, using her "special ed" training. She also taught at Morrow and Lake Harbin Elementary Schools in Clayton County.

The couple has lived in Peachtree City for 11 years. She describes it as "a wonderful place to raise children." While her sons went to a distant school, she said, "there were enough recreation opportunities and things to do that they made friends in the neighborhood, which was important." The family attends Holy Trinity Catholic Church.

"I think the best part of getting an education like this is the Christian values," Vogtner says. "Parents are able to send their kids to a school that reinforces what they're taught at home. The school is smaller, we all know each other, and the discipline is strong. And yet I can walk down the hall any day and get five or six hugs in a matter of minutes."

She says her favorite time of day is morning assembly, "when I can pray with the children, and we can talk about what's going on in the world that doesn't go along with the teachings of Jesus. We still have those values here, even though we do educate for the 21st century, with the latest in computer technology ... it's a good balance."

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