Elgin High principal to retire

Elgin High School Principal Dave Smiley has announced he will retire at the end of this school year.

Smiley is in his 10th year as principal and has been in Elgin Area School District U-46 since 1979.

“I felt like it was time to hand this off, and I felt like we were in pretty good shape,” Smiley said Tuesday. “The next person should be able to walk in and move forward.”

Smiley has been at Elgin High for 12 years. Before that, he was at Streamwood High School, where he enjoyed a successful run as a football coach in the late ’80s.

Before coming to U-46, Smiley was a teacher at Warren High School. He will retire with 37 years in education.

“I’ve been blessed to be around great kids, great students, great athletes, wonderful administrators and teachers,” Smiley said. “I’ll wait for my wife to retire in a few years and we’ll get on with it.”

Smiley’s wife, Lavonne, is the principal of Tefft Middle School in Streamwood.

Smiley’s athletic director at Elgin High, Gwen Poore, who is in her second year at the school, is also resigning at the end of the school year.