Meet The Principal

It is my privilege to serve the students, parents, and staff of Mountain View and West Elementary Schools. I joined the Spearfish School District in 2014 after serving as a principal in the Lead-Deadwood School District as Middle and High School Principal for eight years. Prior to that, I served as a teacher in Spearfish and Flandreau Public Schools where I also coached football, basketball, and track as well as advising student groups.

I attended Black Hills State University earning a B.S. in Elementary Education, then completing my Master's degree in PreK-12 Education Administration through South Dakota State University. I believe that we should all be life-long learners and am currently pursuing my doctoral degree in Education Administration. I am passionate about school improvement and building systems that meet the needs of all students providing a safe, secure, and supportive environment for all students providing challenge and opportunity.

As Principal, it is my goal to establish and build relationships with all students and families of our community, developing not only strong students, but quality citizens. The foundation of any effective school is the partnerships with parents and our community. I am excited about the opportunity we have in our schools and community to build upon an already successful school system, seeking growth through a continuous school improvement process.

I am active in many professional organizations helping me grown and build my capacity including the South Dakota Association of School Administrators and South Dakota Association of Elementary School Principals. I have served on the South Dakota legislative committee, on the state executive committee of the SDASSP, as a national board member of the Association of Secondary Principals, and as an advisory board member of the South Dakota High School Activities Association. I also serve as a State Council member of AdvancED, and national accreditation board member of AdvancED, the accreditation body of over 30,000 schools in the United States. Staying engaged in professional practice and dialog is something I highly value and find beneficial.

In my free time, I enjoy all things outdoors and sharing them with my family. Hiking, fishing, camping, hunting, biking, and skiing brought me from my home town of Salem, South Dakota to the Black Hills. I also enjoy refereeing high school basketball and have been fortunate to work many state tournaments. My wife, Sara, and I live in Spearfish where we raiser our three children. We are blessed to call this community home.