School Board Hires New East Central HS Principal

By Mike Perleberg Tom Black has been hired as the next principal for East Central High School. Photo by Jennings County School Corp. (St. Leon, Ind.) – A new face will be in the principal’s office at East Central High School next school year. Tom Black comes to East Central by way of Jennings County High School, where he has been the principal for three years. “East Central’s reputation speaks for itself. It’s a wonderful school system academically, athletics, performing arts. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of Sunman-Dearborn Schools?” Black told Eagle Country 99.3 upon his hiring Thursday. The Sunman-Dearborn Community Schools Board of Trustees voted unanimously to approve Black’s principal contract. Black, 43, will officially start the job on July 1. A 20-year educator, Black began as a teacher and basketball coach at South Decatur High School. He had stints at a handful of urban and rural schools before getting into administration at Jennings County five years ago. While the allure of leading East Central High School appealed to Black, being able to work closer to home was also a consideration for him. “My family is here. My wife and our two boys built a place on the family farm just north of Batesville. That’s a long drive to North Vernon every day. Those two little boys are only going to get older faster and faster… I don’t want to miss any more time than I have to. They are my number one priority as family should be for everybody,” he said. Sunman-Dearborn Superintendent Andrew Jackson said there were a dozen applicants for the principal job. The board interviewed six of the candidates, but chose Black because he stood out in every aspect. “His experience, his ability to support our teachers. We already have an excellent school, but to continue to improve the instruction piece of it, he’s definitely an instructional leader,” said Jackson. “He had impeccable references. Several superintendents that I know personally I spoke to about him.” Black will replace Kim Simonson, who has been the interim principal at East Central High School this year.

The S-DCSC Board unanimously approved Mr. Tom Black as the new @EastCentralHS Principal. He will begin his duties July 1, 2018. Congratulations, Mr. Black and welcome! #SDLearningtoLead