OCONEE COUNTY — Oconee County school trustees on Tuesday selected the administrators for the new Blue Ridge Elementary School in Seneca, now under construction and set to open for the 2009-10 school year.

After an hour and half in executive session, the Oconee County Board of School Trustees selected Kathy Eichler, now principal the Allen L. Code Elementary, as the new principal of Blue Ridge Elementary when in 2009 for roughly a year. Idasa Cobb, now assistant principal of Seneca Middle School, will be principal-elect. Cobb would become principal of the new school in the fall of 2010.

In a prepared statement, District Superintendent Mike Lucas said, “I am excited about the blending of the schools and redrawing of the attendance lines which will create the new Blue Ridge Elementary School family. We think the transition will be a smooth one for the students, parents and teachers of the Seneca area schools. Mrs. Eichler’s experience along with Mrs. Cobb’s knowledge of curriculum and instruction will be beneficial to the Blue Ridge Elementary students, parents, and staff as they share the principal role the first year in preparation for Mrs. Cobb to assume the duties in 2010.”

Cobb is a 1990 Seneca High School graduate who earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education in 1994 and her Master of Education degree from Southern Wesleyan University in 2004. She completed her education specialist in administration and supervision credentials this year.

“I am humbled and honored to be chosen as principal-elect for the new Blue Ridge Elementary School,” Cobb said. “I am eager to work with the students, families, and staff that will make up the unified Blue Ridge family. As we join together to celebrate the rich traditions of the Seneca communities, Mrs. Eichler and I will endeavor to provide the best educational experience for each and every child.”

The new $18 million school is part of a long-range overhaul of Seneca schools that also will see the Code Elementary School be transformed into the Family Learning Center that would include adult education and be the school district’s alternative academy for middle and high school students.

The plan also calls for J.N. Kellett Elementary School in Seneca to close.