Cummings School Principal is Leaving for Post in Georgetown

After seven years as principal of the Arthur T. Cummings Elementary School in Winthrop, Brian Gill is leaving his position to lead another school.

Gill accepted the job as principal of the Georgetown (Mass.) Middle School last Thursday. He has resigned from his Winthrop position effective August 12 and will begin his new job in Georgetown on August 15.

Gill, 45, will oversee the Georgetown Middle School consisting of 350 students in grades six, seven, and eight. In Georgetown the middle school and high school are located in one building.

“I think personally and professionally, it was time to make a change,” said Gill. “There’s been a part of me that always missed working with students of the middle school age. That was really where I earned my wings.”

Gill praised the faculty and students at the Cummings School.

“The staff and the students are incredible at the school,” said Gill. “I probably brought the school as far as I could bring it. I’m going to miss working in Winthrop. I’m very torn. I’ve made a lot of friendships and worked with a lot of great people. The teachers in Winthrop are just tops in my book. They are some of the smartest and hardest-working people I ever had the privilege to work with.”

Gill said being an effective school administrator extends beyond the classroom and daily school life.

“You make strong bonds with these students and it lasts a long time with the families,” said Gill. “You go through good times and bad times. It’s not always about education and MCAS scores. It’s about building relationships and I’m going to miss that part of it.  I’m certainly going to miss everybody – I’m a Winthrop guy.”

Gill is a 1983 graduate of Winthrop High School. He received an undergraduate degree from Fitchburg State College and a Master’s degree from Salem State College.

After starting a painting business and then working for the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office, Gill began teaching at the Winthrop Middle School in 1994. He taught in Swampscott for two years and became the assistant principal at the Winthrop Middle School in 1998. He served in that position for six years before becoming the principal of the brand new Cummings School (grades 3-5) in 2004.

Gill and his wife and their two children reside in Stoneham.