Steadley Elementary instructor Scott Ragsdale has been named the new Carthage Middle School assistant principal, replacing Tom Moore, who is moving north to become Nevada High School’s new principal.
“I’m very excited and I’m ready to go,” Ragsdale said Thursday via phone, who is currently on a vacation with his family in Washington D.C.
Ragsdale has taught third grade at Steadley for the past three years. He said he’s not worried about jumping from third grade-aged kids to those in middle school.
“I’ve been teaching middle school-aged children in summer school every year since I’ve been teaching, so it won’t be a huge stretch for me,” he said. “Plus, there’s a lot of Steadley kids that I’ve taught who will be there.”
Ragsdale, who was informed of his promotion on Monday, was chosen from a list of four candidates, R-9 Superintendent Blaine Henningsen said.
Ragsdale, he said, “is a really excellent teacher and we’ll hate to lose him in the classroom but he’ll be able to add a lot to the middle school setting.
“He’s done a great job and he recently completed his Master’s degree; he interviewed for the job” and won it.
For the first time ever, the R-9 district is bringing online a middle school, which will be housed inside the old junior building on River Street. It will house grades fifth and sixth. Ragsdale will be working alongside Middle School Principal Robin Jones, who was hired in early 2009.
Ragsdale was born and raised in the Chicago area and moved to the area when he was a sophomore in high school. He graduated in 2001 and attended Missouri Southern State University, graduating in 2005. He is married to his wife Laura, who have a child and a “lazy” basset hound named Rufus.
Moore was picked to be the middle school assistant principal at the start of the 2009/10 school year, after serving under Ron Wallace in the same capacity at the Carthage Junior High School, “but he wanted to be a building leader himself, and there wasn’t a spot for him,” Henningsen said. “He’s a tremendously good administrator and we’ll hate to see him leave.”
CARTHAGE, Mo. —
