GUIDING GROWTH
Before his first day on the job as an assistant principal at Center Grove High School, Dr. Bill Long witnessed the corporation’s commitment to excellence at the Girls Softball State Championship Game back in 1998.
“ I watched, and honestly became so infatuated with Russ Milligan and how he coached his softball teams and how hard they played,” Long says. “And so my first exposure to Center Grove was at that state championship game before I became the assistant principal.”
At the time, Long was the youngest administrator at the high school. He came to Center Grove after serving as an assistant principal in Rushville. Living in Columbus at the time, he made a long drive each day to and from school and eventually asked if he could transfer his young children, Elizabeth and Derek, to Center Grove, before moving into the district the following winter.
Center Grove High School only had 1,800 students at that time, and the community was more rural. Long stepped in as the interim principal of CGHS in 2001 and soon became the principal. But as the streets and neighborhoods surrounding the high school changed, so did Long’s career within the corporation.
“The superintendent at the time said, ‘Hey, we have a position in the central office that we’d like for you to take.’ And it was really hard for me because I loved what I was doing. I loved being a high school principal,” Long says. “But then I thought, those positions don’t come open very often. Do I risk saying no and miss the opportunity? So I moved to the central office and fulfilled my own prophecy. I’ve been in the central office for about 23 years now.”
After serving Center Grove as assistant superintendent of operations, Long was asked by the Center Grove School Board in 2024 to first step in as interim superintendent and later assume the role of superintendent, rounding out a distinguished career within the corporation. His son Derek, who first came to Center Grove Elementary as a young child, now brings his daughter to Walnut Grove – a full-circle moment and testament to Long’s dedication to the corporation.
“ I can’t think of a better place to be the superintendent,” Long says. “It was just thrilling, but at the same time, it’s an overwhelming responsibility.”
Points of pride for Long as he reflects on the changes and progress made over the years include school safety, facility upgrades, and energy efficiencies.
“We started off with just four cameras in the high school. We had one in each corner of the cafeteria. We’ve just grown so much and I am so proud of what we’ve accomplished and what the board has driven us to do to keep our students and staff safe,” Long says. “We created the second school police department in the state of Indiana and were the first school police department to be recognized by NASRO. We’ve put so much effort into not just having a police department, but having a great police department that is fully capable of keeping our staff safe.”
Facilities upgrades became necessary during Long’s tenure, with the building of the new Maple Grove and Walnut Grove elementaries, the closing of West Grove, expansions and renovations of current buildings, as well as academics, athletics, and performance spaces for students to excel.
Center Grove has also found innovative ways to reduce costs during a time when public education funding is being squeezed. Under Long’s leadership, Center Grove created the first two “net zero” elementary school buildings in the state of Indiana, saving hundreds of thousands of dollars in energy costs each year. 
Long looks forward to watching the implementation of the Center Grove Strategic Plan, a community project built using the voices of students, staff, administrators, parents, and community members.
“We’ve set the groundwork to continue to improve our academic performance,” says Long, whose high school graduation rate boasted a 99.57% for last year’s graduating class, the highest in the county.
As for retirement plans, Long says he doesn’t have many plans on the calendar and looks forward to that. He and his wife Laurie plan to travel some this fall, and he says the community will still see him from time to time at sporting events and school activities – something he says he has been privileged to be a part of for so many years, adding that those events will be the hardest to miss in retirement.
“I think missing the people will be the toughest part and the biggest adjustment,” Long says. “I like helping people solve problems.”
As for his legacy, Long says he doesn’t believe you get to choose your own legacy, but he hopes that during his decades at Center Grove, a community he loves, he made an impact.
“I hope my legacy is that I cared for kids, cared for the teachers that worked for us, and only wanted the best for Center Grove.”
