JR Shelt has been named the new principal at Arsenal Technical High School, the campus where his teaching career began.
The Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) Board of School Commissioners recently appointed Shelt to the position. His first day leading the district’s largest high school is May 22.
“This appointment brings me full circle in my professional career as I began teaching at Tech more than two decades ago, and now I get the honor of leading the school,” Shelt said. “This school year I will focus on three things, and those are the school experience, academic achievement, and professional development for all of us.
“The school experience is something I take seriously,” he said. “I want students and staff to want to come to school, to feel safe while they are here, and to know that we are all in this together.”
Shelt said he firmly believes in the mission of the school with the staff and students rallying around the Titan philosophy.
“A Titan is defined by Google as a person or thing of great strength, intellect or importance,” he said. “Titan Pride is real. Titans are who we are, who we always have been; now let’s develop the next generation.”
A graduate of Elkhart Central High School, Shelt continued his formal education with a bachelor’s degree in English education from Indiana State University and a master’s degree in educational leadership from Butler University.
After beginning his career teaching English at Arsenal Tech, Shelt started his administrative career in Lawrence Township as assistant principal and freshman center principal at Lawrence Central High School. Most recently, Shelt served as the principal at New Prairie High School in northern Indiana.
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