Monday, November 24, 2025, was a sad day for Craig’s community.
On that day, beloved former principal Dr. Michael Kuehne passed away following a 15-year battle with Parkinson’s Disease.
The family shared that Mike died peacefully in his bed during the morning.
Dr. Kuehne was Craig’s school leader from 2005 until his retirement in 2010.
In her email to staff announcing the sad news, Craig’s principal Dr. Bjoin wrote, “Mike was a tremendous leader and a compassionate educator whose impact was far-reaching. He served Wilson, Marshall, and Craig as Principal.
“Mike lived a life true to his own advice, serving his students, their families, our school, this district, and our community – his hometown – with integrity, humility, and a great sense of humor. He will be missed by many.”
On Thursday, Dec. 11, hundreds of his friends, family, and colleagues attended a visitation and funeral to pay their respects.
A Legacy of Leadership by Dr. Alison Bjoin, Craig Principal
Dr. Michael Kuehne loved Craig High School. His story came full circle, beginning, ending, and living on, all at Craig.
Mike was a proud Janesville native who graduated from Craig. He joined the navy, became an educator, served students and staff at many levels of leadership, and eventually returned to Craig – his alma mater – as principal.
Dr. Kuehne made a real difference in the lives of countless many. He taught lessons on leadership by example. Many mornings before school, Mike could be found picking up trash, encouraging us to be good stewards, or caretakers, of our school. When he was at a game, cheering on our athletes, or in attendance at a concert or musical, applauding our student performers, he reminded us that school spirit is about a deep sense of pride and belonging. And sometimes, in between meetings and classroom observations, Dr. Kuehne was in the halls, touching up the walls with a bucket of paint, reminding us to leave things better than we found them.
In the year of his retirement, Mike was added to the Honor Wall – which he created – with a surprise induction. He had no warning and no time to prepare a speech, but in his acceptance remarks, he encouraged students to work in the service of others and make whatever contributions they could with the gifts and talents they possessed. He shared a quotation, originally offered by Teddy Roosevelt, that was one of Mike’s favorites: “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” Dr. Kuehne lived a life true to his own advice, serving his students, their families, and our school with integrity, humility, and a great sense of humor.
Mike will be remembered at Craig. His portrait hangs alongside the other building principals, his plaque is installed on our Honor Wall, a mosaic of his face is immortalized alongside a Craig Cougar outside the fieldhouse, and most enduringly, his legacy of compassionate leadership lives on in the people whose lives he impacted.
I am one of the people whose life was changed by Mike Kuehne. I was fortunate to have him as a mentor and honored to call him my friend. He will be missed.
A teacher remembers Dr. Kuehne
I have been privileged to be a teacher in the School District of Janesville for 35 years. Thirty-three have been at Craig. Dr. Kuehne made a profound impact on me, and it was his sense of humor and ability to make human connections that I will always remember.
At a staff meeting before the start of a school year, he reminded us assembled teachers to be ready to welcome the students and to remember that not every student is perfect. “Parents are sending us the only kids they have,” he said.
He reminded us that our priority is to make every child feel accepted, to love them all, even though they can be unlovable at times. Dr. Kuehne always acknowledged that teaching is a challenging profession, but he never let me forget that every student deserves to be treated with dignity, respect, and love.
Dr. Kuehne also looked for ways to inspire our teaching staff.
I remember a staff meeting when he showed a video clip from the 2006 season of “Britain’s Got Talent.” In it, Paul Potts, a shy telephone salesman, auditioned in the hopes of reaching his dream to sing opera. As he got ready to start, some members of the audience snickered. The judges gave each other side glances.
But then Paul sang.
He brought the audience and judges to their feet with his beautiful voice. He would go on to win the talent competition. For more than 20 years has been a successful recording artist who has travelled the world.
After the video, Dr. Kuehne reminded us to find out what makes every student special and to know that every student is more than meets the eye.
This video was so inspiring for me that I continue to show it to my classes almost 20 years later.
Thank you, Dr. Kuehne, for the imprint you made on our school and on those who were fortunate to know you.
