A Lexington County school district has welcomed two new principals.

At its regular May 16 meeting, the Lexington County School District 1 Board of Trustees approved the hiring of David Dixon as the new principal of Gilbert High School and the promotion of Joseph Casey to principal of Saxe Gotha Elementary, located in the Red Bank area.

The new principals will assume their new roles July 1.

Dixon comes from within the district, leaving his post as the District’s human resources and Title IX coordinator. 

The principal started his education career in North Carolina where he served as a teacher and coach. While in the state, he served as principal for South Iredell High School from 2006 to 2010 before moving on to lead Northumberland High School in Virginia from 2010 to 2013.

From 2014 through 2018, the new principal served in the Hospital Education program at the University of Virginia Children’s Hospital; during this time he supervised and administered the Hospital Education Program and coordinated goals and initiatives of the UVA University Hospital with the Virginia Department of Education, state-operated programs and the Charlottesville City School System, according to a press release.

Outside of being a principal, Dixon served as assistant director for leadership development at the Center for Leadership and Ethics at the Virginia Military Institute and as advisor to the Cadet Superintendent’s Advisory Board.

Dixon’s education comes from the Virginia Military Institute, where he received a bachelor’s in history and from West Virginia university, where he received master’s degrees in secondary education and educational leadership. He also holds S.C. Leadership Professional Certifications in elementary and secondary principal and S.C. Teaching Professional certifications in middle level social studies, mathematics, and social studies.

Like Dixon, Casey is also joining from within the district, currently serving as an assistant principal at Oak Grove Elementary.

“Saxe Gotha Elementary is a school with a rich history of excellence and tradition and I am excited to join the SGE family,” Casey told the Chronicle.

Casey began his career at White Knoll Middle School as an English arts teacher and coach in 2006. Within the district, the new principal has served as a lead interventionist for the Response to Intervention Program and a coach for Pelion High School from 2010 to 2016.

His most recent position outside of the district was serving as assistant principal for curriculum and instruction from 2016 to 2021 at Dent Middle School in Richland County School District 2.

Casey’s education comes from Suffolk County Community College, where he has an associate’s in general studies. He received his bachelor’s in adolescent english education from the State University of New York College at Cortland and his master’s educational leadership from the University of South Carolina.

“The opportunity to work with amazing educators to serve this community was an opportunity of a lifetime for me. I cannot wait to meet the children, families, and staff I will be serving,” Casey said “They have experienced a lot of growth and success over the last several years, and I plan to continue that success while helping the Saxe Gotha family reach new heights.”