Out of thousands of principals considered for the High School National Principal of the Year award, a New Jersey educator took the top spot!
Tony Cattani, principal of Lenape High School in Medford (Burlington County), was given the country’s top honor for high school leaders by the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) for 2025-26.
Cattani has been leading the school for the past 18 years. According to his nomination, he has developed a positive and inclusive school culture, encourages professional collaboration, and has organized more than 3,000 peer observations and collegiality cafes. He continues to share best practices with colleagues at New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association conferences, and is an executive council member of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. His leadership focuses on student well-being, and academic and personal growth.
For the NASSP Principal of the Year program, each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Department of State Office of Overseas Schools and the Department of Defense Education Activity selected one middle and one high school principal to represent their state or department. From those nominees, three middle and three high school finalists were chosen. The NASSP Middle Level National Principal of the Year and High School National Principal of the Year are selected from among the finalists.
Cattani was awarded on July 9 at the UNITED – The National Conference on School Leadership gala in Seattle, which brought together thousands of school leaders from across the country.
At the gala, Damon Lewis of Ponus Ridge STEAM Academy in Norwalk, Connecticut, was named the Middle Level National Principal of the Year.
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