SPRINGVILLE (May 14, 2024) — The Springville-Griffith Institute Central School District Board of Education approved the appointment of Mr. Karl Gesing to serve as Principal of Springville Elementary School during the board meeting on Tuesday evening.
Mr. Gesing currently serves as the Pre-K-12 Assistant Principal at Ellicottville Central School District and will begin his tenure at SGI on July 1, 2024. Mr. Chris Scarpine has been in the role for the past eight years and will leave at the end of this school year to assume the role of Coordinator for Arts and Humanities at Jamestown Public Schools.
“I am excited to welcome Karl to our SGI family,” Superintendent of Schools James Bialasik said. “Karl was impressive at each stage of a rigorous selection process. He is a skilled leader and educator who is thrilled to be here at SGI. I’m confident that Karl will work hard to forge strong relationships with students, staff, families and our community while building upon the great work already happening at Springville Elementary School.”
Mr. Gesing was selected for his emphasis on creating and fostering relationships and his focus on collaborative leadership. He is excited to work in partnership with our staff to maintain the great programs and traditions at Springville Elementary and see students grow and improve during these critical years of their education.
“There is a great foundation at Springville Elementary and I am excited to be able to pair my skill set with the incredible teachers and the community to be able to strengthen our young learners, as they come through our building and we prepare them for middle school, high school, and life after,” Mr. Gesing said.
Prior to his appointment at Ellicottville in May 2023, Mr. Gesing served as an elementary teacher at Allegany-Limestone and Salamanca school districts for over eight years.
Mr. Gesing received a Bachelor of Education from the University of Pittsburgh Bradford. He also holds a Master of Education from American College of Education and a certificate in Advanced Studies for Educational Leadership and Administration from the University of Rochester.
He is a family man with over 10 years of experience in public education. He always wanted to work with children and was inspired to enter public education by his mother, who dedicated herself to volunteering in her community.
“When you get to see students, who have an incredible amount of excitement from learning something, a big light bulb moment, those are the things that make you feel like you're doing important work. Those are magical moments that you're helping to create and inspire,” Mr. Gesing added.
Mr. Gesing lives in Ellicottville with his wife, Jennifer, an elementary teacher, and their two children, Miles and Josie.
Please join us in welcoming Mr. Gesing to Springville Elementary School!