The DeKalb County School System has named a new DeKalb County High School principal and assistant principal, after Principal Randy Jennings and Assistant Principal David Gash stepped down this year. Gash announced his retirement, while Jennings stepped down to pursue teaching and to spend more time with his family.
According to Director of Schools Patrick Cripps, 34-year-old Thomas Cagle has been named the new assistant principal, while Bruce Curtis will be the principal at DCHS.
Cagle has been a history teacher at DCHS for the past five years, but many may know him from the sidelines at the Tigers’ football games. Cagle has been an assistant coach with the team ever since he began at DeKalb.
“I grew up in Bledsoe County, in Pikeville, TN,” Cagle told the Smithville Review. “Most of my family are teachers and administrators that work for the school board, so I grew up around all of that. My whole life I’ve been around teachers, so I just sort of stuck with the family business.”
Cagle has been a teacher for several years, beginning in Nashville. “After graduating from Bledsoe, I went to Tennessee Tech to get my degree,” he explained. “Then, my wife was attending Vanderbilt University, so we moved to Nashville and I taught at East Nashville Magnet Middle School. From there we moved back to Cookeville, where I taught at Jackson County for a couple of years.”
While teaching in Jackson County, Cagle said he saw an opportunity that would bring him to DeKalb County. “I happened to see a position posting from DeKalb for football and history teacher. I got ahold of Coach Steve Trapp, and ended up getting a meeting with him and Dr. Kathy Bryant, when she was principal there, and they gave me the opportunity to come to DeKalb. I’ve been here ever since.”
Like his predecessor, David Gash, Cagle will be in charge of discipline at the high school, and sadly will have to step down from his coaching position. “I do have to step down from football when I was offered the position. There is a lot of responsibility that comes with being an assistant principal and in administration, and to benefit the kids and the community I need to put all my focus into that.”
Bruce Curtis is no stranger to DeKalb County, having been born in Alexandria and later moving to Smithville. The son of Buddy and Leann Curtis, said he has been an educator for 27 years now.
“I’ve spent the last 21 in Metro Nashville Public Schools in Davidson County,” Curtis told the Smithville Review. “I taught a little in DeKalb County before that, and taught in Cookeville in Putnam County, where I did coaching and teaching. I then decided to make the move to Metro, and I’ve been there the last 21 years.”
“I was mainly at Antioch High School, when I was teaching and as an administrator,” Curtis continued. “I spent ten years there, and the last 11 years I’ve been at the Board of Education as the Director of Discipline.”
When asked why he wanted to take the principal position at DCHS, Curtis said he felt it was time. “I was ready to come home,” Curtis said “I spent 21 years driving to Nashville and back every day, and it puts some wear and tear on you. The opportunity came up with Mr. Cripps, and I felt it was a good time to come back home.”
Curtis said he is anxious to start working on his home ground and with kids that he knows. “I’m looking forward to working with the kids of DeKalb County. Kids I know and not just from work everyday.”
