Head Football Coach Chosen as New Principal of Lemont High School

Lemont High School's head football coach will now take the reins as the new principal. 

Lemont High School District 210 Superintendent Mary Ticknor has recommended Eric Michaelsen to serve as Lemont High School’s next principal, pending approval by the Board of Education.

A long-time Lemont resident with nearly 30 years of experience in education, Michaelsen currently serves as the school’s Director of Guidance and head football coach, and has ties to the school as an alumnus and a parent of three graduates.

Michaelsen will take the reins from Dr. Thomas Trengove, who will retire on June 30, 2014, after a 21-year stint as the school’s principal.

“Eric Michaelsen is the right person to facilitate success for all of our students, and he is resolved to do whatever is necessary to ensure Lemont High School continues to be one of the most successful comprehensive high schools in the state,” Ticknor said.

The Board of Education is expected to formally approve Michaelsen’s selection at its Nov. 18 meeting. Michaelsen will assume his post on July 1, 2014.

District 210 received dozens of applications for the school’s upcoming principal’s vacancy. After initial screening interviews, five candidates were selected to participate in the first round of interviews. Three advanced to a second round of interviews that included sessions with a variety of stakeholder groups. Michaelsen also interviewed with the district’s Board of Education.

“We had many quality candidates for this position, but Eric stood out from the rest,” District 210 Board of Education President Mike Shackel said. “Simply put, he is a leader - in the academic arena, as a coach, and in the community.”

Since 2004, Michaelsen has served as Lemont High School’s Director of Guidance, heading a department that provides a wide range of services to as many as 1,500 students each year. He is familiar with the steps the school has begun to take to address important state mandates - including the implementation of the Common Core State Standards and increasing requirements for teacher evaluation. His selection as the principal will help to provide continuity for teachers during an increasingly challenging period in education.

“In his various roles at Lemont High School, Eric has enjoyed much success but has done so while demonstrating personal humility and attributing those successes to those who surround him,” Ticknor said. “His knowledge of the school and familiarity with the community are invaluable strengths that will help him succeed in this new role.”

Michaelsen returned to his alma mater as a social studies teacher in 1998, then served as a dean of students for three years and a guidance counselor for two years before being tabbed to lead the Guidance Department. 

Michaelsen arrived at Lemont High School with more than a decade of experience in various positions in a high school setting. From 1985-90, he held roles as a teacher and guidance counselor at Detroit Lutheran West. During an eight-year stint (1990-98) at Walther Lutheran High School in Forest Park, Michaelsen gained additional experience as a teacher, registrar, dean of students and guidance counselor.

In addition to his building leadership role as the Director of Guidance, Michaelsen also has guided Lemont’s football program through the most successful stretch in school history. Over 12 seasons (2002-13), his teams compiled a 106-33 record, made nine straight playoff appearances from 2004-12, and won seven conference championships. The Indians twice finished as the IHSA Class 6A State Runner-Up (2007, 2008), and dozens of his players have moved on to play collegiately.

Michaelsen will close his football coaching career after 20 years, which also included one season at Detroit Lutheran West and seven seasons at Walther Lutheran.

Michaelsen earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Secondary Education from Concordia University in 1985, where he also was a letterman in football. He earned a Master of Arts degree in School Counseling from Eastern Michigan University in 1990, and a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership from Olivet Nazarene University in 2007.

A 1981 graduate of Lemont High School, Michaelsen lettered in baseball and football, and also was a member of the school’s Mathletes squad. An all-conference offensive tackle, he helped Lemont to a Northeast Conference title and the school’s first-ever IHSA playoff appearance in 1980 while playing under eventual Lemont High School Athletic Hall of Fame honoree Marv Gonsiorowski.

Michaelsen and his wife, Kim, reside in Lemont and are the parents of three Lemont High School graduates – Sara (Michaelsen) Weeks ‘07, Mary Michaelsen ‘09 and Rebekah Michaelsen ‘12. Four generations of his family have attended Lemont High School, including his grandparents - Thomas Hennebry ‘28 and Mildred (Koch) Hennebry ‘28 - and his mother - Marjorie (Hennebry) Michaelsen ‘55.

Lemont High School’s full-time principals have included John Pedroni (1979-89), Steve Midlock (1989-93) and Trengove (1993-2014).

Editor’s note: The information above was provided in a press release from Lemont High School District 210.

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