Dr. Gerald D. Slemmer (Gerry) is in his sixth year as Red Mountain High School principal.  In his previous position, Gerry served as assistant superintendent for secondary education in the Wilson school district, West Lawn, Pennsylvania. Prior to that, he served as the high school principal, assistant high school principal, physical education department supervisor, and head football coach.

In education for 36 years, Gerry has enjoyed success in many roles. As a coach, he was recently elected into the coach’s hall of fame in the Berks County Football Coaches Association and the Pennsylvania Football Coaches Association.  In 15 years as head coach, Gerry compiled a record of 129-42. His teams won 9 Lancaster-Lebanon Section I Championships and two District III championships. The ‘90 squad played in the state semi-finals and the ’89 squad made it all the way to the state finals in Pennsylvania. Presently Gerry has two players in the NFL, John Gilmore a tight end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneer’s, and Kerry Collins, a quarterback for the Tennessee Titans. A third former player, Shane Stafford, quarterbacks the Orlando Preditors in the Arena Football league.

During his administrative career in Pennsylvania, Gerry improved the advanced placement program by adding eight new courses and substantially increasing enrollment in  AP courses. He initiated the Academic Boosters and created the Distinguished Alumni Award, an annual award presented to outstanding alumni for “significant contributions to society."  His former high school was also the recipient of performance incentive grants from the Pennsylvania Department of Education as a result of significant assessment test score improvement.

Educationally, Gerry holds a Bachelor of Arts in Education with distinction and a Masters in Science from Arizona State University.  He also holds a Doctorate of Education from Widener University, Chester Pennsylvania.  Gerry is a certified trainer for Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and teaches graduate level administrative leadership courses for Northern Arizona University.

As principal at Red Mountain, Gerry adheres to the basic philosophy of his 3 R’s: Rigor, Relevancy, and Relationships.  He also believes in the importance of reading and writing across curriculum content.  He wants all students to be successful and involved in school activities.  Ultimately, he wants all students to understand that the best teacher they will ever have is themselves.