Eric Nilsson was Inspire’s first principal, and served the school for eight years.  Prior to that he was an Assistant Principal at Pleasant Valley High School, and he directed a Smaller Learning Communities grant for Pleasant Valley and Chico High School for several years.  He started his career in education at Butte College after acquiring his Masters in English from Chico State.  After teaching at the American School of Las Palmas in the Canary Islands, he returned to California with his family, returned to school for his teaching credential and taught English at Gridley and Chico High Schools.  Eric is married to Julie Anderson-Nilsson, and they have three children, Georgia, Taylor and Lilly.