MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The Monongalia County Board of Education announced that Corey DeHaas has been named the new principal at North Elementary School.
The board approved the hire unanimously at their regular meeting Tuesday, where DeHaas was given the position on a full-time basis after serving as Interim Principal at North Elementary since February. Monongalia County School Superintendent Eddie Campbell stated it was an easy decision to move forward with DeHaas overseeing North Elementary based on his efforts over the course of the year under strenuous circumstances.
“He stepped into a real tough situation there and did a good job for us, and we think that he’s the right guy to carry forward into the next school year and beyond,” said Campbell on DeHaas and the decision to hire him as a full-time principal.
DeHaas was named interim principal at North Elementary after the now-former principal, Natalie Webb, was placed on leave due to two incidents of aggressive disciplining of special-needs students, allegedly by staff at the school. The staffers involved now face criminal charges, and Webb was officially dismissed after a closed personnel meeting earlier this month. With the massive change undertaken by the school, which was still reeling from another incident in November 2022, Campbell stated DeHaas showed leadership that proved he was more than qualified for the position.
“That’s a tough situation to walk into, to fill in for a long-time principal, under the circumstances that he did,” said Campbell on DeHaas performance after he was named interim principal at North Elementary. “He really was able to keep the staff on point and focused on what their mission was,” he said.
Before he began work at North Elementary, DeHaas served as assistant principal at South Middle School. He also served as assistant principal at Mountainview Elementary School and has been a part of the Monongalia County Schools system since 2011. In his roles, Campbell has heard nothing but positives from fellow educators on DeHaas’ performance, along with students and parents, and it has reflected in his work at North Elementary despite being a new face in a controversial time for the school.
“He provided, really, the stability that the school needed in a turbulent time,” said Campbell. “I think not only the staff, but he was able to maintain that rapport with the parents and the students there in the transition,” he said.
Webb has appealed her dismissal from the position of principal at North Elementary, but she is also facing criminal charges for allegedly not reporting the abuse of a student in a timely manner. Former vice principal Carol Muniz is also facing battery charges after she allegedly struck a special needs student in January. Amidst major turnover at North Elementary under terrible circumstances, Campbell feels DeHaas can help turn the page on a rough chapter for the school.
“We really felt like, you know, he demonstrated the leadership qualities that we certainly look for in our principals,” said Campbell. “He had experience in the system on multiple levels, and we just felt like it was his time to step up and take the big chair,” he said.