DAVID FLORENSKI has been hired as the new superintendent/principal of the North Dickinson County School District.

FELCH TOWNSHIP — David Florenski has been named the new superintendent/principal for the North Dickinson County School District.

The school board Thursday officially hired Florenski, with a start date of today. However, he was in the school building in Felch Township on Friday, getting acquainted.

The 50-year-old most recently was interim superintendent/elementary school principal at North Central School District in neighboring Menominee County for the past year, after previously working in the district for four years as middle/high school principal.

Before that he was middle/high school principal for East Jordan Public Schools in northern Lower Michigan.

But he had been a social studies teacher and guidance counselor for Gladstone Area Public Schools for 20 years, also coaching girls and boys basketball. Both of his sons had been born in the Upper Peninsula, he said, so “they wanted to come back.”

He had been considering retiring, he explained, when the North Dickinson position opened up. “I think I still have some reserves in the tank for the kids,” Florenski said.

While oldest son Connor has already graduated and about to start his sophomore year at Alma College in downstate Michigan, younger son Mason is a freshman who has transferred to North Dickinson to join his dad for his first year in high school, Florenski said.

The family, which includes wife Kelly, now live in Stephenson. Kelly Florenski is originally from Marquette, where Florenski earned his master’s degree in guidance counseling and school administration. He received his bachelor’s degree in teaching from Alma College, where his son now attends.

Florenski said he’s “very excited” about joining the district. “Just something new, a change — see if I can do great things at North Dickinson.”

The school board had secured Mary Brayak to lead the district through at least Sept. 3, while she helped guide the superintendent/principal search through the Michigan Association of School Boards.

The position became open when Angel Inglese resigned, effective June 30, to become director of general education for the Dickinson-Iron Intermediate School District. Inglese, who had the position for more than 12 years, did agree to stay on through July to help while the district works on her successor.