Posted: Tuesday, February 9, 2010 3:16 pm

Director of Schools Harry Gill has announced principal assignments for the 2010-2011 school year that will affect four schools, including LaVergne High School, LaVergne Middle School, Oakland Middle School and Whitworth-Buchanan Middle School.

“Selecting principals to lead our schools is never easy because their roles are crucial to a school’s performance and success,” Director Gill said. “These principal assignments are in the best interest of our schools and our district so we can continue to be among the finest in Tennessee.”

LaVergne High School and LaVergne Middle School

Dirk Ash, the current principal of LaVergne Middle School, has been named the head principal of LaVergne High School beginning with the 2010-2011 school year. The current principal, Melvin Daniels, will be reassigned to another position within the district. His new assignment has not yet been made.

The change became necessary because of continued academic concerns at LaVergne High School.

Ash has been an educator for 31 years and served as principal at LaVergne Middle School since its opening in 2004. Previously, he served as an assistant principal at Siegel Middle School and taught Algebra at Riverdale High School. He also has taught and coached in Smith and Wilson counties.

In addition, Ash was recently named Middle School Principal of the Year for 2009-2010 by the Tennessee Association of Secondary School Principals and will compete at the national level against winners from other states.

“I have always had personal aspirations to be a high school principal, and I am excited to begin this new venture,” Ash said. “I am extremely grateful to the LaVergne Middle School family and have tremendous belief in their capabilities. I hate to leave them, but I appreciate the faith that Mr. Gill has in placing me at LaVergne High School.”

Cary Holman has been named the principal of LaVergne Middle School.

Holman currently serves as the principal of Central Middle School, which will become the district’s first magnet school for grades 6-12 beginning in 2010-2011 and will be known as Central Magnet School.

“I plan to carry on the great tradition that has been set at LaVergne Middle School by the faculty, the staff and the current administration,” Holman said. “I’m very eager to begin working with the community at hand to continue to move the school forward.”

Holman has been an educator for 14 years and has served as principal of Central Middle School for the past four years.

Previously, he served as a principal and an assistant principal in Franklin County and as a teacher at Homer Pittard Campus School in Murfreesboro.

He also served as an interim assistant principal at Siegel Middle School in 2006.

Oakland Middle School and Whitworth-Buchanan Middle School

Sandra Eaton, currently an assistant principal at Oakland High School, has been named the principal of Oakland Middle School. Eaton has been an educator for 21 years and has taught at Oakland High School, Smyrna Middle School, Middle Tennessee State University and in Florida.

In addition, she previously coached tennis at Oakland.

“My goal is to continue to work closely with Oakland families to provide optimum learning opportunities for our students,” Eaton said. “I look forward to collaborating with our stakeholders to develop a transition program and service-learning offerings that will benefit our students and the community.”

Avy Seymore, an assistant principal at LaVergne High School, has been named the principal of Whitworth-Buchanan Middle School. Seymore has been an educator for 30 years and has been an assistant principal at LaVergne since 2003. Previously, she taught math at Oakland High School and LaVergne High School and special education at Roy Waldron Junior High and Rule High School in Knoxville.

“I am very excited about the opportunity and challenge of opening Whitworth-Buchanan Middle School and I would like to thank Mr. Gill and the Rutherford County School Board for placing their trust in my ability,” Seymore said. “It is my hope that the school will become a positive focal point of the community for many years to come.”

Both principals will begin their new duties the first week of March and will work from the Rutherford County Board of Education central office until the schools are ready to occupy in June or July. For additional information, contact Community Relations Coordinator James Evans at (615) 893-5812 or evansj@rcs.k12.tn.us.