A veteran educator who has worked for the Princeton Public Schools since September 2009 was appointed this week to be the next principal of Riverside Elementary School.
Mark Shelley is leaving his job as the humanities supervisor at Princeton High School to lead an elementary school of about 300 students, starting Aug. 1, district administrators announced. Board of Education members appointed Shelley to the position on July 24. He could not be reached for comment.
Shelley graduated from Furman University with a bachelor’s degree in art history and religion, and from the University of South Carolina with a master’s degree in education, district spokeswoman Brenda Sewell said. His salary will be $138,000.
Shelley was one of 147 applicants vying for the job Valerie Ulrich held for two years before she moved into the district’s central office this summer to serve as a grant writer and special projects coordinator.
In a news release announcing Shelley’s appointment, district administrators said he has more than 20 years of teaching experience and served as a coach for basketball and cross-country teams at the high school.
Superintendent of Schools Stephen C. Cochrane lauded Shelley as “an exemplary educator and leader. Mark is a true instructional leader whose kindness and care for children and adults is apparent in all he says and does.”
Shelley is the third principal to lead the school in a short span of time, not counting an interim principal.
Riverside had been run for 30 years by Bill Cirullo, a fixture in the district who died in February 2016. Ulrich was hired later that year, but left the school for another job in the district. Her transfer was approved May 22 and she started her new position at the beginning of July.
As for Shelley’s previous position at the high school, Sewell said the position has been posted and administrators will review applications after the Aug. 15 closing date.
