Nagel ‘fitting the bill’ as Heights’ elementary principal
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CARROLLTOWN -- Eric Nagel "always wanted" to work in education.
Before he was launched into a new administrative role as the Cambria Heights Elementary School principal in December, Nagel spent 15 years as a social studies teacher for the Glendale Area and Cambria Heights school districts.
Many of his peers said having Nagel, the head coach of the district's boys varsity basketball team for nearly two decades, fill the position is a slam dunk for the district and the community.
Nagel earned his master's degree at Saint Francis University in 2007 and worked as the district's special programs coordinator for seven years before he became a principal.
For a number of years between 2005-13, Nagle, along with Superintendent Ken Kerchenske and middle school Principal Jarrod Lewis, worked in the middle school together under then-Principal Dave Caldwell's leadership.
Caldwell recommended all three men to the school board because he felt it was important to hire people who connected with children and were willing to go beyond the typical school day hours to help them.
"Mr. Nagel fit the bill," he said. "We always encouraged innovative educational practices, and Mr. Nagel brought many to his classroom."
Caldwell said Nagel played football for Cambria Heights in the '90s when he was the head coach. He said Nagel possessed strong leadership skills from a young age, but he is especially impressed with his work ethic and dedication to children. Nagel was "always willing to help" him with projects that were either after school or on weekends, Caldwell said.
Kerchenske said he remembers working with Nagel to review and assess the criteria for the Don Eichhorn Schools: Schools to Watch program designation, which the middle school first received in 2012.
The program is the state affiliate of the National Forum's Schools to Watch program, which honors middle schools for academic excellence, developmental responsiveness, social equity and organizational structures and processes.
As teachers at the time, Kerchenske said he and Nagel "had to be honest with" themselves about what the school's weaknesses were, so whenever the Schools to Watch committee did its walk-through observations, Cambria Heights was among the best middle schools in the nation.
Kerchenske said he remembers when Nagel led the boys varsity basketball team to its first PIAA District 6 championship in 2009.
"I know that was a big day for him and the community," Kerchenske said, adding the strengths that make Nagel an "excellent administrator" are he's a lifelong resident of the district and he understands the needs of the community.
"A lot of the parents and grandparents of the children now in the district are people he grew up with," Kerchenske said.
In 2016, a special programs director position was created out of a necessity for a lot of new needs in the district, he said. Nagel thrived in the role, according to Kerchenske, and was responsible for anything that was state or federally funded, including the Pre-K Counts and Juvenile Accountability Block Grants programs.
He said Nagel was also responsible for making sure the district complied with requirements of support for homeless students who were displaced because of tragedies, such as losing a home from a fire.
As a result of working together in various capacities, Nagel's friendships with Kerchenske and Lewis have grown personally and professionally over the years.
Lewis said Nagel is a "hard-working" and "selfless" guy who is willing to wear a number of hats to make things successful.
"He's someone I would consider like a brother," Lewis said. "He's a great guy who would do anything for you, and he does a lot for kids."
According to Carrolltown resident Drew Thomas, Nagel's care for kids in the area goes well beyond the walls of Cambria Heights Elementary School as they've worked together on the borough's Parks and Recreation committee for over 10 years.
"Eric's one of the very few that has stayed on (the committee)," Thomas said. "Most people I've worked with, when their kids move on, they move on. But Eric is a really good community guy."
Thomas said the committee heavily relies on fundraisers to support community days that also raise money to keep the park operating and maintained for the kids to play in.
"Anything we need done, I just reach out to him, and he's usually there and doesn't hesitate to volunteer," he said.
Nagel said the borough's park is "beautiful" and called Cambria Heights his home.
"I bleed blue and red," he said. "I graduated from here, my wife teaches here and my son goes to school here."
While he's still learning the ins and outs of his new position, the kids he interacts with are the reason Nagel loves coming to work every day. He loves seeing them grow as people and as students, he said.
If Nagel has a late basketball practice, he said he doesn't get home from work until around 8 p.m.
"Right now it's winter, so it's basketball 24/7 and spending time with my family," Nagel said of how he spends his leisure time.
The one thing he enjoys the most about coaching basketball is the relationships he has with the players, even after they graduate.
"We can talk about the wins and the losses. But, at the end of the day, it is the relationships that you build with those players," he said. "We've always had great kids."
Nagel said he feels honored and thankful that the school board had faith in him to lead the elementary school.
"I love Cambria Heights," he said. "I want Cambria Heights to be the best it can be, and I think we're on that right path."
Mirror Staff Writer Matt Churella is at 814-946-7520.
The Nagel file
Name: Eric Nagel
Age: 46
Hometown: Carrolltown
Education: Cambria Heights High School, 1996; Saint Francis University, Bachelor of Arts in History Education, 2001; Saint Francis University, master's in educational leadership, 2007
Work Progression: Social studies teacher at Glendale Area School District, 2001-04; Eighth grade history teacher at Cambria Heights Middle School, 2004-16; special programs coordinator at Cambria Heights School District, 2016-23; Principal at Cambria Heights Elementary, 2023-present.
Family: Tammy, wife; Ian, 17, son; Bella, a cockapoo
Hobbies: Coaching basketball, watching Pitt athletics and Saint Francis basketball
Favorite quote: "It's not the critic who counts." -- Theodore Roosevelt