Eden Prairie Schools (EPS) announced Thursday that Mike Ongie will serve as the new principal of Cedar Ridge Elementary School, effective Monday, Aug. 18.
Ongie is currently the associate principal of Cedar Ridge and has been part of EPS since 2021, when he joined the school as an instructional excellence coordinator. He also served as a high school science teacher in various schools in New York and Minnesota.
“I am so excited to continue serving the families, students, and staff of Cedar Ridge Elementary School,” Ongie said in a statement sent to Cedar Ridge families on Thursday. “We have such a strong community, and I am committed to supporting our students in reaching our mission to inspire each. I look forward to stepping into this new role with our fantastic staff to continue to help our students thrive.”
The search for a new Cedar Ridge principal began last month when Valora Unowsky, the former principal, announced she would be leaving the district for a position with St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS).
EPS immediately started a search for a new principal, which included several rounds of interviews, including an interview night with the final three candidates on Tuesday. At the interview night, Cedar Ridge families and other community members scored the candidates’ responses and provided feedback to the hiring committee, which was used to make their final decision.
“Having served as an instructional excellence coordinator, associate principal and now principal, (Ongie) has consistently shown a deep commitment to supporting both students and staff,” Superintendent Josh Swanson and Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Education Felicia Thames said in the statement. “His expertise in digging deep into curriculum, along with his hands-on work with staff, students and families at Cedar Ridge, makes him an outstanding choice.”
According to the email, EPS will now conduct a search to find a new associate principal for Cedar Ridge to fill Ongie’s previous role.
Comments
We offer several ways for our readers to provide feedback. Your comments are welcome on our social media posts (Facebook, X, Instagram, Threads, and LinkedIn). We also encourage Letters to the Editor; submission guidelines can be found on our Contact Us page. If you believe this story has an error or you would like to get in touch with the author, please connect with us.