Kirksville's William Matthew Middle School has announced a new assistant principal for the upcoming school year.

The Kirksville R-III School District announced Thursday that Mr. Clay "Jamie" James would be replacing Mr. Ed Koser as assistant principal of WMMS, while Koser becomes the principal of 7-12 grades in Schuyler County.

James was a math teacher at Maryville R-II School District and the Assistant Coach for Track and Field. Prior to Maryville, James was the Math and Business Teacher at Nodaway-Holt R-VII for fourteen years. James participated in the Northwest Missouri Regional Professional Development Center Teacher Academy in 2015-2016 and was nominated for the Missouri Regional Teacher of the Year in 2017.

James graduated from Montreat College in Montreat North Carolina with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. He earned a Master's of Middle School Education with an emphasis in Mathematics, an Alternative Teaching Certification from Northwest Missouri State University, as well as an Educational Specialist degree from William Woods University.

I'm excited to be a part of the Kirksville school district as William Matthew Middle School’s new Assistant Principal," said James. "The opportunity to work with a great group of educators, students, and community members is what I am looking forward to the most in the upcoming school year.

James brings his family to the Kirksville area including his wife, Ashlee James, who also accepted a position in the district. Ashlee James will be a Guidance Counselor for the Kirksville R-III School District.