New Principals Named at Irmo High, Dutch Fork Middle

Lexington-Richland School District Five has named new principals for Irmo High School and Dutch Fork Middle School.

Ohio educator David Riegel has been selected as the new principal of Irmo High. He has served as principal of Franklin High School in Franklin, Ohio since 2008.

The search for Irmo's principal began after principal Rob Weinkle resigned as head of the school in December due to "health concerns." Former Lexington High School principal Creig Tyler has been serving as the school's interim principal. 

Dr. Gerald Gary, a principal at Leaphart Elementary School, will take over as principal of Dutch Fork Middle. He has been an administrator at Leaphart since 2011.

Both will begin in their new roles at the start of the 2013-2014 school year.

District Superintendent Stephen Hefner said, “District Five has a strong pool of administrators working to make our schools the best they can be, and bringing Mr. Riegel and Dr. Gary into these new roles is a continuation of that. We look forward to the exciting new things they will bring to these schools.”

Riegel has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Ohio State University and a master’s degree from Michigan State University. He has been an educator in Ohio since 1991. During his tenure at Franklin, the school earned its first Excellent rating from the Ohio Department of Education. Riegel also worked to expand professional development opportunities for staff and instituted reforms leading to increases in student achievement and graduation rates.

Riegel said, “I’m thrilled and honored by this opportunity. As principal at Irmo High School, I will be striving to make the school excellent in everything it does. From academics to athletics, excellence is the goal.”

Dr. Gary earned his Bachelor of Science in elementary education from Francis Marion University, his master’s in educational administration from the University of South Carolina and a doctorate degree from Nova Southeastern University. At Leaphart, he has advanced the school’s LEAP magnet program, implementing engineering concept into classroom curriculum.

“While I will miss the staff and students at Leaphart, I’m excited to work with the students and community at Dutch Fork Middle,” Dr. Gary said. “Together, we will continue the strong tradition of educational excellence at District Five.”

From Lexington-Richland 5's Office of Public Information