GULF HIGH SCHOOL
Administration
STEVE KNOBL became the principal of Gulf High School on June 9, 2008.
He was previously the principal of Bayonet Point Middle School.
Mr. Knobl was born and raised in Long Island, N. Y. He earned a full scholarship from St. Leo and played baseball. After a series of injuries, he ended his playing career and transferred to the University of Central Florida, from which he earned a degree in elementary education. He began his teaching career at Richey Elementary School in 1994. In 1998 he accepted a teaching position at River Ridge Middle School, where he taught critical thinking. He moved to River Ridge High School the following year and taught driver's education and PE. While at River Ridge he coached girl's golf, football, girl's basketball, and baseball. In 2000 he accepted a position at Mitchell High School as a driver's education teacher and a department head. He coached girl's golf and girl's basketball. He was also the school's business manager. He completed his master's degree from St. Leo in 2000. In August 2002 he became the Assistant Principal for Curriculum and Instruction at Land O'Lakes High School. In 2005 he transferred to Gulf Middle for a year as an assistant principal and in 2006 he was promoted to principal of Bayonet Point Middle School. He is currently pursuing a Ph. D. in Curriculum and Instruction at USF and hopes to graduate with this degree in the summer or in the fall. Mr. Knobl and his wife Laura have two boys, Drew, 6, and Nathan, 3.
THOMAS BROCHU
became the Assistant Principal for Administration in
1998. Mr. Brochu began his career in Education in 1986 as a Physical
Education Instructor, Coach and Athletic Director at Kingsbury School
K-8 in Oxford, Michigan. In 1987 he moved south to Darien, Georgia to
McIntosh County Academy Grades 6-12. At MCA he supervised the In School
Suspension Program and coached football, and girls basketball and
track. In 1989 he moved to Florida and taught at Largo High School. At
Largo, Mr. Brochu taught in their Dropout Prevention Program - GOALS
for one year then supervised the ISS program. In 1991 he moved to Largo
Middle School where he taught seventh grade science and Supervised the
ISS program. In 1993 he joined the North Ward Intensive Behavior
Improvement System Grades 6-12, in St. Petersburg. At the IBIS program
he taught health, drug free schools curriculum and physical education.
In October 1996, Mr. Brochu accepted a position as Assistant Principal
at the James Irvin Education Center in Dade City. Mr. Brochu received a
B. S. degree in physical education and an M. A. and Ed. S. degree in
Educational Administration from The University of Michigan. His wife,
Laura is an Instructional Assistant at Calusa Elementary. They have
two sons, Kris in the Air Force and Brett attending USF, and a daughter
attending MHS.
DR. JUDY B. GALLAGHER is the Assistant Principal
for Student Services. She began her career in Pasco County
in 1974 as a teacher at Cypress Elementary School. From 1977 until
1990, she was an owner and teacher of Genesis School. In 1990, she
was appointed as Assistant Principal of Richey Elementary School and
transferred with the staff to Cotee River Elementary School when it
opened in 1994. Dr. Gallagher transferred to Denham Oaks Elementary
School in 1995 and transferred to Gulf Middle School in 1996. Dr.
Gallagher received her bachelor's degree in elementary education and
business education from St. Leo College and her master's degree in
administration and supervision from American University. She received
her doctoral degree in early and middle childhood from Nova
University. She is certified in elementary education, business
education, administration/supervision and school principal. She has
served on numerous district committees such as Middle School Design
and High School Task Force.
FLORENCE BUONO is the Assistant Principal for Instruction.
She joined the Gulf administration in January 2005.
Before coming to Gulf, Mrs. Buono taught math at J. W. Mitchell High School.
She began teaching there when the school opened in 2000. She was also the girls track and cross country coach at Mitchell.
Before teaching at Mitchell, she was on the faculty of Bishop Larkin School in Port Richey
for two years and she taught math for four years at Ridgewood High School.
She has a B. A. degree in mathematics education from the University of South Florida and an M. Ed. degree in Educational Leadership from USF.
She was born in the Bronx, New York. For two years she attended Preston High School, a private
college-preparatory school for women established by the Sisters of the Divine Compassion in the
Throgs Neck section of the Bronx. Her last two years of high school were spent here in Pasco County at Hudson High School, from which she graduated.
Her husband, Frank Buono, teaches science at Hudson High School and coaches boys track and cross country.
They have two boys, one at Mitchell and one at Hudson High School.
Dr. DEBORAH J. LEPLEY became an Assistant Principal at
Gulf High School
in November 2004. She is in charge of the International Baccalaureate
Program at Gulf.
She had previously been at Ridgewood High School for eighteen years.
She began there as a visual arts teacher, teaching AP, Portfolio, and
Art History,
but became an Assistant Principal in 2000.
She was also an
Adjunct Professor at Florida State University.
Dr. Lepley was born in Coshocton, Ohio, and grew
up in Mount Vernon, Ohio. She attended River Valley High School in
Caledonia, Ohio.
She holds a Bachelor of Art Education degree and an M. A. degree in
Visual Arts Education,
both from The Ohio State University, and a Ph. D. from Pennsylvania
State University.
As a Fulbright recipient, she taught visual arts at
St. Cuthbert's High School in Newcastle upon Tyne, in England.
She also served in the U. S. Army, in the 101st Airborne Division.
While stationed in
Germany, she was an Adjunct Professor of Art at the University of
Maryland European Division.
DOUGLAS L. ELIAS
is the Assistant Principal for Adult/Community
Education. He is responsible for the Adult Ed (night school) program
and community education programs. He joined the Gulf High School
administration in 2008.
Before coming to Gulf, Mr. Elias was athletic director and an assistant principal at Concordia High School in Concordia, Kansas, in the 2007-2008 school year.
Previously, he was the athletic director at Wiregrass Ranch High School, where he also coached golf. Before coming to Wiregrass, he was an
Exceptional Student Education teacher at Land O' Lakes from 2003 to 2006.
Before Land O' Lakes, Mr. Elias was a strength and conditioning coach with his alma mater, Kansas State, from 1989 to 1993, and West Virginia's strength
and conditioning coach from 2001 to 2003. Mr. Elias has a bachelor's degree in education from Fort Hays State University and a master's degree
from Kansas State University.
His wife Staci has coached vollyeball at several high schools and was an assistant women's basketball coach at USF.
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