At its June 21 meeting, the North Hunterdon-Voorhees Regional High School District Board of Education unanimously approved Mr. Ron Peterson, current Assistant Principal of Voorhees High School, to be the new Principal of Voorhees effective August 1, 2011. Peterson succeeds David Steffan who will be retiring on August 31, 2011 after 12 years as Principal of Voorhees High School.
“I am very excited about my promotion to Principal of Voorhees High School. It is truly an honor to be selected to the position that has been held by Dave Steffan for the past 12 years. Thanks to his efforts, Voorhees enjoys an excellent reputation and it has been a pleasure to work with him for the past three years. I have a great deal of respect for the administration, staff, students and community of Voorhees and I look forward to working with them so that we may continually strive to improve an already high achieving institution,” said Peterson.
Peterson was chosen from approximately 40 internal and external candidates who applied for the position of Principal. A screening committee reduced the number of candidates to nine, who would then be interviewed by a separate committee consisting of parents, students, supervisors, a teacher and the Assistant Superintendent. After meeting with eight candidates (one candidate took a position elsewhere), the interview committee recommended three candidates to be interviewed by Dr. Charles Shaddow, Superintendent of Schools. In the end, Ron Peterson was Shaddow’s choice for the position. The Board met with Peterson prior to voting on his appointment as Principal.
“After an extensive and thorough search, it became apparent that Ron was the right person for the job. We all look forward to working closely with Ron in his newly expanded role as the educational leader of one of the finest high schools in the state and country,” said Shaddow.
Prior to his three years as Assistant Principal of Voorhees, Peterson spent 13 years at South Hunterdon Regional High School where he wore many hats in the small district. At South Hunterdon, Peterson was Dean of Students, Supervisor of Athletics, Chairperson of the Special Education Department, and a Teacher of the Handicapped. He was also South Hunterdon’s Affirmative Action Officer.
Peterson received his Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Education/Social Studies/Psychology from Kutztown University in 1992 and his Master of Science in Educational Leadership from Delaware Valley College in 2004. He also holds a Certification as a Teacher of the Handicapped from Holy Family College.