Posted on 11/06/2007 9:53:35 AM PST by RDTF
BRISTOW, Va. - The principal of a Prince William County elementary school has been found dead in a county park. Police say the body of Derek Michael Drummond, 44, of Bristow, was found Monday afternoon by an 8-year-old girl and her grandfather who were hiking in Locust Shade Park.
Police spokeswoman Erika Hernandez says there were no signs of trauma or foul play. Police are waiting for an autopsy report and results of a toxicology test.
Drummond was principal of Cedar Point since it opened in 2001 and before that was principal of Occoquan Elementary School.
He must have dated Hillary.
Wow, my kids are at this school right now at SAC. Schools are closed for teacher workdays and voting today.
Pretty obvious he is a former principle.
LOL, ain't that the truth!
Was he a “former principle” because he is now dead or was he a “former principle” before he was found dead.
A difference that could have a bearing on the story.
My guess is that he is not a “former principle” but rather a “former principal.”
I think he was the current principal
http://www.wusa9.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=64874&provider=gnews
Prince William Elementary School Principal Found Dead
It must suck to have been the last kid in that school to have been sent to the Principal’s Office.
DOH!
Or was that the principle principal?
The principal had no principles.
A principle problem
THE principal principle proble.
problem - - damn!
ok the man is dead. Please.
Bush’s fault. Cheney misfired. Rove on a rampage. Blackwater. Halliburton. Ted Neugent.
Question where was Hillary during the time LOL!
I don’t understand how you people can be so insensitive. This man was so incredibly devoted to his children. He was an outstanding Principal and the children will have a difficult time adjusting. He was truly loved and admired and it is a huge loss for not only his family, but our entire community.
please let us know if you hear more info on this and I’ll do the same
-snip-
About 10 a.m., Drummond’s wife, Jyl, reported him missing to Manassas police. A broadcast was sent statewide, said Sgt. Tim Neumann, a Manassas police spokesman.
The school was closed yesterday for parent-teacher conferences, but officials said counselors will be on hand today.
School officials said yesterday that Drummond usually arrived at school at 6 a.m. to get his administrative work done so he could spend the rest of his time with students.
“He will be remembered by the thousands of students whose lives he touched here at Cedar Point,” Assistant Principal Louis LePore said in a statement. “He was like a big Teddy Bear. He loved children and he loved his work. He brought his best to his job every day. He was a true professional.”
Superintendent Steven L. Walts called Drummond’s death “a tremendous loss.”
“Mike was held in high esteem not only at Cedar Point, but across the school division,” Walts said.
Drummond began working for the district in 1987 as a special education teacher at Yorkshire Elementary School, Prince William schools spokesman Ken Blackstone said.
Drummond went on to work as an assistant principal at Antietam and Potomac View elementary schools and was principal at Occoquan Elementary School when he was appointed to Cedar Point in 2000, Blackstone said.
Sturm, who spoke on behalf of relatives at their request, said Drummond received his doctorate in early childhood development from Virginia Tech and gravitated toward special education and gifted students — “those who were out of the mainstream,” she said.
As a principal, Drummond was not above dressing in costume for a fair or racing a miniature bike for the students’ amusement, Sturm added. “He wasn’t the kind of principal where kids were afraid to be sent to the principal’s office,” she said.
Drummond was also a father of two children, ages 7 and 11, and was constantly talking about how much he loved them, Sturm said. She remembered how Drummond acted right after the birth of his eldest.
“He just kept looking at his little son and saying, ‘You’re my very best friend,’ “ she said.
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