Heritage Academy will lose two of its top administrators at the end of the school year, with Headmaster Tommy Gunn and Heritage Elementary Principal Yandell Harris leaving for headmaster positions elsewhere.
Gunn confirmed Thursday he has accepted a position as headmaster of Marshall Academy in Holly Springs.
He has served as a headmaster for the majority of his 38-year career, having served at Heritage for six years and previously holding similar positions at five other schools.
Gunn Thursday said he wants to be closer to family and to leave Heritage quietly, with no fanfare.
Harris is leaving Heritage Elementary to take a headmaster position at Oak Hill Academy in West Point. He said the career move is a step up for him, but after spending 26 years at Heritage, his departure will be bittersweet.
Some of the original faculty remains, and there are some new faces, students he taught who now are parents of Heritage pupils.
“There are so many things I’m going to miss,” Harris said Thursday. “Heritage has been a part of my family. Any time you’re with somebody that long, you’ve made a lot of friendships. This is an exciting, new challenge — one I’m eager to take on — but at the same time, I’m leaving behind a lot of memories and friends.”
Still, he called Oak Hill “a wonderful opportunity” and a “great place with a solid foundation.”
He said Gunn has been instrumental in helping him.
“He’s just a wonderful man,” Harris said. “He has really steered me in this particular job search and gave me wonderful advice.”
Both job openings are listed on the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools website at msais.org.
The Heritage Academy Board of Trustees released a statement Thursday afternoon saying the search to fill Harris’ position has been going on for a while, and they are pleased with the quantity and quality of the applicants.
An immediate search for a new headmaster has been launched, and they hope to name a new leader by the end of April.
“The Board is unified in its desire to place the best possible person in the leadership role of our school, and we are also unified in stating that our number one priority is the superior education, in a safe environment, for the students at Heritage,” school officials stated. “There are tremendous opportunities available for our school. As we look to the future, we must do everything we can to capitalize on these opportunities for Heritage.”
Carmen K. Sisson is the former news editor at The Dispatch.
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