Jones returning to school where he began working for the district in 2005
Following the July 14 announcement by longtime Sarasota High School (SHS) Principal Jeff Hradek that he will retire from on July 29, North Port High School principal David Jones has requested the SHS posting, the Sarasota County School District has announced. With Superintendent Lori White having granted that request, a news release says, Jones will start his new assignment on Monday, Aug. 1.
A meeting has been set for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, July 26, in the North Port High media center to get comments from any staff, students, parents and community members about the qualities they would like to see in the next leader of that school — “a process known in the school district as a site analysis,” the release adds. North Port High is located at 6400 W. Price Blvd.
Anyone who is unable to attend the meeting may pick up a form at the North Port High administration office to submit written feedback by Thursday, July 28, the release points out. The position will be posted to the district website on Monday, Aug. 1; interviews will begin shortly thereafter, the release says.
White expects to name the next principal of North Port High before classes start on Aug. 22 for the 2016-17 school year, the release adds.
Hradek has been principal of Sarasota High since 2003. He also served as principal of Brookside Middle School and as an assistant principal at Brookside and Laurel Nokomis schools, the release continues. Before joining the Sarasota County School District in 1994, he was a teacher and later an assistant principal at schools in Sandusky and Rocky River City, Ohio.
In his email to staff last week, Hradek wrote, “As of July 29 I will be retiring after a 39-year career in education. It has been a great journey and my 13 years as principal of SHS have certainly been some of the most rewarding of my career. I want to thank all of you for your professionalism, commitment to your students and friendship over this time period. Sarasota High students have been, and will continue to be, fortunate to have you there to both challenge and care for them.”
“For Jones, the move will be a homecoming of sorts,” the release says. “He began his career with the Sarasota County Schools at Sarasota High in 2005; he spent five years as a math teacher and then as an assistant principal at the school,” it adds.
In July 2010, he was named principal of McIntosh Middle School in Sarasota. He became principal of North Port High in July 2012, the release notes.
Jones began his career as an educator in 1990 in the Douglas County School District of Colorado. He taught math, technology and health courses at Cresthill Middle School and served as the Math Department chairman, the release says. He was named an “Outstanding Teacher” by the district.
In a message he sent to his North Port High colleagues, Jones wrote, “It has been an absolute honor working among such an outstanding staff for the past four years. You have successfully established the University of Cambridge AICE program and seen its first graduates. You have supported and worked to witness the official Visual and Performing Arts magnet program soar to unprecedented levels. The efforts of this staff have put our JROTC program into an elite position with national recognition. Hundreds of stories of successes and honors are the fruit of your labors. And underlying everything, you work tirelessly to ensure that our students learn as much as possible every day. I could not be more proud to have been affiliated with you these past four years.”