The Kearney School District (KSD) announced several administrative changes that will begin in the 2019-2020 school year. The positions of Kearney High School (KHS) principal, Kearney Junior High School (KJHS) principal and Kearney School District activities director (AD) will have new but familiar leadership.

Dave Schwarzenbach, high school principal since 2011, has accepted the role of activities director. Schwarzenbach has served in several administrative roles throughout his career in education including his previous role as KJHS  principal.

Schwarzenbach’s knowledge of KHS and extensive background in athletics and coaching make the move to athletic director a natural transition. Schwarzenbach played college football at Lamar University in Beaumont Texas. He started his formal coaching career while attending Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas as a high school swim team coach. Once he started his teaching and coaching career, he was a three-sport coach for seven years in junior high and high school football, basketball and track.

As Schwarzenbach moves  into his new role, Andy Gustafson, KJHS principal since 2010, will transition to the role of KHS principal. Gustafson, an alumnus of KSD, began his teaching and coaching career in Kearney as a science and social studies teacher and coach in 2000.

He accepted his first role as an administrator for the district as the Kearney Middle School assistant principal in 2006 and then became the assistant principal for KJHS in 2008. As the junior high principal, Gustafson has always worked very closely with the high school administrators to help support students as they move from junior high to high school. His leadership and dedication for the past 19 years with the district will certainly be an asset to the high school as he moves into his next administrative role.  

With Gustafson’s move to the high school, Mike Hoffman, KJHS assistant principal since 2011, has accepted the position of KJHS principal. Hoffman has 26 years of experience in the education field as a teacher, coach and administrator.

He began his career as an English teacher at the high school level and transitioned to junior high school when he accepted his first roles teaching and coaching with KSD in 1997. He dedicated 14 years of teaching to the students of this district before moving into his current administrative position. In addition to his assistant principal role, Hoffman has also served as the junior high director of activities for the past seven years. Hoffman has demonstrated exceptional leadership as the assistant principal and will continue to be dedicated to the success and support of the students and staff at KJHS.

Laura Hartman, current KHS assistant principal, has accepted the role of assistant principal for KJHS.

Hartman began her career in education as a teacher and coach in 2005 at Lee’s Summit West High School. In 2010, Hartman moved her career to the Liberty School District where she was an English teacher for five years. Her path to becoming an administrator began in 2014 when she took on the role of administrative intern with Liberty High School. The experience she gained in Lee’s Summit and Liberty made Hartman a great addition to Kearney High School when she accepted the position of assistant principal in 2015.

Hartman’s current role as the assistant principal has given her the opportunity to see how students transition from junior high to high school. Her experience working with these upperclassmen will be a wonderful support in helping to prepare junior high students for the pivotal next step to high school.

The changes in KSD’s administrative roles derive from the announcement that current athletic director Eric Marshall has accepted a new role within the education field. Eric Marshall has been a dedicated Bulldog staff member since he started his career as a teacher in 2001. He continued to move into administrative positions throughout his time with KSD and became the Bulldogs activities director in 2008. Marshall devoted his time to developing strong and successful programs for KSD students. He has served the district and community for 18 years, and we are truly grateful for all he has done to support the students and families of this district.

The role of Kearney High School assistant principal will be open this week. Potential candidates can visit the employment section of the district website for more information and to apply for the position.