Strong Leadership in Place for the Upcoming School Year

Lakota Local Schools kicks off the new school year with strong leadership in place across every campus. We are pleased to welcome several new administrators and highlight key leadership transitions within Lakota.

“This is an exciting time for our district,” Superintendent Ashley Whitely said. “The leaders stepping into these roles bring a strong commitment to student achievement and will provide the guidance, energy and support our students and staff need to thrive every day.”

Preschool & Early Childhood Schools

Thea Staley joins Lakota as the assistant director of the preschool program. Staley most recently served students in West Clermont Schools as special education supervisor.

Joining Heritage as assistant principal, Crystal Baughn comes to Lakota from the Middletown Early Learning Center where she served as the preschool principal.

Elementary Schools

After serving as Cherokee Elementary’s assistant principal since 2022, Mike Stapleton has been named principal of the school. Kelly Welling will join him as assistant principal. Welling comes to Lakota from Reading Community Schools where she served as an intervention specialist.

Returning to Lakota Local Schools, Tricia Constable will join VanGorden Elementary as the school’s new assistant principal, having previously served in this role for five years at Endeavor. Most recently, Constable was an assistant principal in Blue Ash.

Junior Schools

With more than a decade of school administration experience, James Dallio joins the Plains administration as assistant principal. Prior to a shift into business operations and administration, Dallio’s previous K-12 experience includes being a principal in Edgewood City Schools.

High Schools

John Mason returns to Lakota as assistant principal at Lakota West High School after spending the past year in the same position at Milford High School. Mason previously spent a decade serving Lakota East students as assistant athletic director and science teacher.

Austin Rhoads also joins Lakota West as the school’s new athletic director. Rhoads returns to his alma mater from Springboro High School where he served in the same position.

Lakota West Freshman’s new leadership team includes Dr. Princess Crenshaw as associate principal and Nicholas Jarrell as assistant principal. Crenshaw returns to Lakota from Sycamore High School where she served as assistant principal. Jarrell comes to Lakota from La Salle High School where he served as assistant principal.

Brian Wallace joins the administration team at Lakota East’s main campus as assistant principal. Wallace previously served in the same role at Plains Junior School since 2021.

Dr. John Spieser joins Lakota Central as associate principal. Spieser comes to Lakota with over 20 years of experience in school and district administration, most recently serving as the interim principal at Ross Intermediate School.

District

Curriculum and Instruction

Justin Wilson moves from assistant director - testing coordinator to director - accountability and assessment. Wilson has previously served Lakota students as assistant principal and assistant director of instruction for grades 9-12. 

Joining Wilson, Jessica Carrelli and Benjamin Glad will serve as assistant directors for grades K-6 and 7-12 respectively. This three-person team will provide accountability and assessment data to support decision making around curriculum and instruction at the district and school levels.

Having served as the West Freshman assistant principal since 2024, Dan Hartman has been named director - curriculum and instruction, grades 7-12. Katie Hambly joins Hartman as assistant director. Hambly most recently served as director of curriculum at McNicholas High School in Cincinnati.

In his new role as director of career exploration and strategic partnerships, Andrew Wheatley’s work will lead to more real-world learning and career opportunities for students. He has served Lakota students as director- curriculum and instruction, grades 7-12 since 2018.

Special Education Department

Joe Howard joins Lakota’s special education department as an assistant director from Lakota East High School, where he spent the last year as assistant principal.

Melissa Rossi, Paula Hickey and Heather Johnson shift to new positions in the special services department. Rossi and Hickey move into special education director roles and Johnson moves to assistant director of specialized classrooms. 

Treasurer’s Department

Matt Wendeln brings over 25 years of experience in Ohio public education and a well-rounded background in school finance, operations, human resources and educational leadership as he joins Lakota as the District’s new assistant treasurer. Most recently serving as the assistant treasurer for Milford Exempted Village Schools, Wendeln spent 13 years with the Hamilton County Educational Service Center.

Andrew Machan joins the treasurer’s department as director of finance from Dayton Public Schools. In his role as Dayton’s budget director, Machan oversaw the district's operating budget, developed long-range financial forecasts, supported strategic planning initiatives and led budget services operations. 

Shannon O’Connell has joined the treasurer’s department as benefits manager. With over 10 years of experience in school district payroll and benefits administration, O’Connell most recently served the staff of Middletown City Schools.

Lakota previously communicated changes to its executive leadership: Lori Brown, executive director - pupil services, Rebecca Tompkins, executive director - curriculum and instruction, Dr. Tracy Wurtzler, interim executive director - special education and Randy Bertram, interim treasurer.