Hello, and welcome to the Avonworth School District! My name is Tom Ralston and I am proud to serve as the Superintendent, a post I have held since 2012. I am fortunate to work and live in a community that places such a high value on education.
Prior to my appointment as Superintendent, my career was focused on middle-level education. I served as the Middle School Principal at Avonworth for six years, first joining the District in 2006. Previous to my tenure at Avonworth, I was the Middle School Principal in the South Side Area School District for eight years. I began my career as a Middle School Science Teacher in the Hancock County School District in West Virginia where I also briefly served as Middle School Principal.
My preparation to be an educator began at West Liberty State College (now West Liberty University) where I received a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education with specializations in general science and social studies in 1989. I then completed my Masters of Arts degree in Educational Leadership at West Virginia University in 1996. I achieved my Doctorate in Education at Youngstown State University in 2014.
My career has taken me from amazing experiences in schools in Japan to a visit to the White House to meet with the President of the United States. However, nothing compares to seeing the daily magic that occurs in our schools and classrooms. My purpose as Superintendent is to inspire others to dream and act on creative learning experiences for students.
My family and I make our home in Ohio Township in the Avonworth community. My daughter is a proud graduate of the class of 2017 and my son is a current student in the District. Outside of school, I enjoy spending time with my family, running, reading, collecting comic books and playing guitar.
With kindest regards,
Tom Ralston
Superintendent's Statement on the Avonworth School District as
A Place of Belonging for All
Superintendent Evaluation:
According to the Pennsylvania School Code, districts’ school boards are required to develop mutually agreed upon objective performance standards for the superintendent and conduct a formal, written performance assessment of the superintendent annually. The objective performance standards are to be posted on the district’s website. At the end of the annual assessment period, the school board shall post the date of the assessment and whether or not the superintendent met the agreed-to-objective performance standards.
2019 - 2020 Goals
2018 - 2019 Goals
July 2019 - Dr. Ralston has successfuly met his 2018-2019 agreed-to-objective performance standards.