Wood Oaks Junior High School’s new principal comes by way of Skokie, but he’s no stranger to Northbrook.

Rob McElligott, who currently serves as assistant principal at Old Orchard Junior High School in Skokie, will take the place of outgoing principal Marc Shaffer in July.

Before he became assistant principal, McElligott spent ten years as a math teacher, five of them at Northbrook Junior High School. 

Earlier: Wood Oaks Principal Will Leave District This Year

“Having worked at Northbrook Junior High School, I am aware of the commitment to quality education that both the students and parents of this community possess,” he said in a press release. 

Before he became a teacher, McElligott served in the U.S. Navy, where he taught advanced math, physics, chemistry and electronics. He was appointed by District 27’s board of education at a meeting Thursday night, after a nationwide search to replace Marc Schaffer. Following eight years in the district, Schaffer announced in February that he was taking a job as director of a middle school district in Colorado. 

McElligott said that his first priorities would be getting to know students and staff in District 27, as well as the parents.

“Great things happen when all members of the education process — students, parents, teachers and administrators — are focused on the same outcome,” he said in the release. 

Superintendent David Kroeze said McElligott was a welcome addition to the district, which has two elementary schools and one middle school. 

“Rob comes from a strong junior high school background and has a deep knowledge of the middle school student,” he said. “His enthusiasm for these learners demonstrates his love for this level.”