When the 2024-2025 school year begins, a new assistant principal will move into the front office.

The School Board approved the hiring of Mrs. Robyn Witty at their meeting on Tuesday night. Mrs. Witty comes from Mooresville where she served as the Dean of Students at the high school for four years.

“Mrs. Witty has been there for a few years in that position,” Principal Michael Gasaway said. “She has a lot of experience, and everyone at Mooresville has said a ton of good things about her. Everyone we talked to over there loved her and had nothing but great things to say. She will fit in here at Greenwood just right.”

Mrs. Witty brings more than a decade of experience to the job. She began her career outside of the classroom but quickly transitioned.

“My education journey was not a typical one,” she said. “I graduated from Franklin College with a Bachelors in biology and spent some years as a study coordinator. That was where my interest in education came into play. I was working for the IU School of Medicine in the Dean’s Office. I earned a Masters in Education from UIndy and trained through the Woodrow Wilson Indiana Teaching Fellowship, which trained highly qualified science professionals to enter classrooms.”

After completing training, Mrs. Witty transitioned into the classroom full time. She taught at four different schools for a total 13 years.

“I have experience at a variety of school settings, including Christel House Academy, Shelbyville Central High School, Roncalli High School and Triton High School,” Mrs. Witty said. “My endorsement is in Secondary Life Science, and I have taught everything from AP Environmental, Biology, Life Science and Integrated Chemistry and Physics. I also spent time as a XCTF coach and led Student Council groups.”

When the position opened up, Mr. Gasaway received hundreds of emails. In all, 91 people applied for the position, and the process was rigorous to find the right fit.

“The process consisted of us screening through all of the applicants,” Mr Gasaway said. “After we screened the external candidates, we had seven internal candidates to talk to. We interviewed five external candidates after screening and all of the internal candidates. We had one week of internal interviews, and then had the next round of official first round interviews. Those interviews contained teacher groups, students groups, parent groups and administrative groups. All the candidates had a night of in-person interviews, and we determined then to have a final round with two of the candidates. That was one big group interview with the whole administration. We determined the new hire from there.”

Mrs. Witty grew up on the southside near Greenwood and knows the close-knit community well. In fact, she is married to Mr. Keith Witty, who teaches and coaches at the high school.

“I grew up in Greenwood in a neighborhood just south of the high school,” she said. “My husband and I have raised our own family here on the southside, too. The resounding comment I hear consistently about GHS from the parents, students and teachers is that it feels like a family. My husband and I have three kids who will also be joining the Woodmen family, and I am so thankful for the opportunity to be part of such a welcoming community.”

Mr. Gasaway has not yet spoken with Mr. Witty about the hire.

“I haven’t really talked to Coach Witty about it throughout the process so that was nice. We didn’t discuss anything personally with him during the hiring or talk to him about it at all. I’m sure he and his family are excited and happy to be here at Greenwood and do great things here at GHS.”

The toughest part of all for Mr. Gasaway and the rest of the administration, was the official hire and decision-making process. With nearly 100 candidates, choosing just one was difficult.

“A lot of time and phone calls with a ton of questions were had,” Mr. Gasaway said. “We had tough calls with some and got a lot of input from a lot of people. But at the end of the day, I had to make the call of who was coming in. Our biggest thing we looked for in a hire was someone who wants to embrace Greenwood and love Greenwood. We wanted someone who was all in.”

Input from teachers and community members was another important part of the process.

“We heard from the teachers that they wanted someone to have empathy for the kids and the school and not use Greenwood as a stepping stone. We want someone who wants to be here and stay here. Greenwood takes pride in the amount of time a lot of our people have been here. Someone who came in with great ideas and initiative as well. We wanted the experience and someone ready to get to work. We wanted them to work well with everyone from admin to teachers to students and having a disciplinary background was another big factor for us. It wasn’t an easy process whatsoever, and we have to move forward and know we made the right choice. I’m really excited and think we got a really good one. She was the perfect fit for Greenwood.”

Mrs. Witty looks forward to contributing to the academic success of students. Her background has given her a diverse look at many types of students.

“I am mostly focused on contributing to Greenwood’s ongoing mission,” Mrs. Witty said. “Whether addressing attendance issues, providing academic support, offering guidance resources or implementing other interventions, my goal is to ensure that every student has the tools they need to thrive academically and personally.”

Mrs. Witty sees GHS as a destination spot for her career. She looks forward to spending time collaborating with the faculty and touching the lives of students.

“I look forward to getting to know the students and staff. My favorite part of being an administrator is getting to see the students’ transformative journey throughout four years of high school. To be able to witness their growth, have a part in guiding them through challenges, and celebrating their achievements is such a joy. I look forward to collaborating with the high school staff and supporting every teacher in their classrooms,” she said.