Belleville East’s new principal is former high school wrestler who used to ‘bleed maroon’
Joe Rujawitz will be Belleville East High School’s next principal, the Belleville Township High School District 201 board decided unanimously Monday evening.
“I’m honored to take this position,” Rujawitz said. “It’s something that I’ve always viewed as a very, very important job. Every single day I walk on that campus, I know that I’m there to support our staff and our student body.”
Rujawitz will officially move from his current position as the school’s associate principal to his new role July 1, just in time for the 2025-26 school year’s start. His salary will be $145,000, Superintendent Brian Mentzer said.
Rujawitz will succeed current principal Andrea Gannon, who will step into a district-level administrative position before retiring at the end of the next school year, Mentzer said. The district has yet to determine the specifics of Gannon’s new role.
At a previous meeting, the District 201 board hired Marshaun C. Warren, the district’s current assistant superintendent of human resources and diversity, equity and inclusion, as its new superintendent. Mentzer is moving to nearby Millstadt Consolidated Community School District 160.
During Rujawitz’ start at the district, he was “bleeding maroon.” He graduated from Belleville West in 2002, where he was a wrestler, and wrestled throughout college too. After college, he returned to be a paraprofessional and assistant coach, and later head coach, at the school.
It was during his time as a paraprofessional that Rujawitz’ discovered his passion for working with youth with behavioral and emotional disorders and subsequently earned his special education endorsement.
“When I worked with (students with disabilities), I felt like we really made a lot of progress and headway, and I knew that was probably the best situation that I could be in to really help kids,” Rujawitz said. “And that’s why we get into education — to help kids.”
After a short stint as a special education teacher at Belleville West, Rujawitz became a special education teacher at Belleville East. Rujawitz said he “fell in love with (East’s) campus.”
And there he stayed. After being a special education teacher at East, Rujawitz became the school’s behavioral interventionist, then an assistant principal, and, for the past two years, its associate principal.
Throughout his various roles, Rujawitz said he’s prioritized building relationships with students, families and school employees. It’s something he plans to continue as East’s principal.
Mentzer said he is proud that District 201 will soon see Rujawitz as a principal.
“I think I could speak for everyone in the room who has worked with Joe: He’s just a hard worker, he’s an honest guy, he loves kids (and) he loves the school where he works,” he said.
This story was originally published March 18, 2025 at 5:41 AM.