Photo by Graham Cullen As the child of a career U.S. Air Force officer, Paul Fer took a circuitous route to his role as assistant principal at St. John Regional Catholic School. Purchase this photo

Thanks to a father who was a career U.S. Air Force officer, Paul Fer came from South Carolina -- by way of several states, Germany and Holland -- to attend Mount St. Mary's University.

"I was brought up Catholic and was looking for a Catholic university," he said Friday. "A friend of mine had gone to the Mount a year ahead of me. I came up and fell in love -- it was everything I was looking for."

After earning his elementary education degree in 2001, he decided he wanted to stay in the area. He applied to the Archdiocese of Baltimore for a teaching job after deciding he would prefer to teach in a Catholic School.

St. John Regional Catholic School was the first school to offer an interview, and that's where he's been since the 2001-02 school year.

"Teaching in a Catholic school is a more complete experience for me as a Catholic," he said Friday. "I get to talk about my faith and show my faith -- there are no boundaries."

Fer, 30, taught math, science and religion until his promotion to assistant principal in December 2005. He knows he's been fast-tracked to the school's administration and said that he gets a few stares when people see how young he is.

"It's a nice fit for me, I've found," Fer said of the administrative position. "I enjoy pre-K through eighth grade, and I get to spend time with all of our students -- and not just for disciplinary reasons."

Continuing to teach an eighth-grade pre-algebra class means he stays connected to the classroom and his fellow teachers.

"Because I still teach, I get to say 'we' instead of 'you' when talking to our teachers about something," he said. "Teaching a class is something I hope I can continue to do for some time to come."

During his tenure, St. John has established a professional development relationship with the Mount. Fer was quick to point out the credit is not all his. He believes the program would have happened eventually, with or without him.

While the Mount has always enjoyed a relationship with Frederick County Public Schools, St. John is now the only Catholic school that places student teachers from the Mount.

"We have three students in the building right now," Fer said. "It adds a wonderful element to our school and allows us to continue our good relationship with the Mount."

He's continued his own relationship with the Mount, having completed his master's degree in education in 2007.

The school community is also excited about its nomination as a National Blue Ribbon School. Winners should be announced later this week, and Fer said he and Principal Karen Smith are hopeful St. John will get the nod.

The Blue Ribbon designation is awarded to public and private elementary, middle and high schools that are academically superior, or demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement, according to the U.S. Department of Education website.

Fer is married to "a brilliant, brilliant lady," a scientist at the National Cancer Institute-Frederick .

No children yet, Fer said, but they have three cats.