Concord Middle School will start the new school year with a new face in the principal's office.

After nine years leading the school through one of the biggest transformations in its history, Principal Justin Cameron is leaving to become Ashland Public Schools' director of student services and special education.

In a letter to families, Cameron said it was time "to begin a new chapter in my career."

Assistant Principal Dan Hausermann will step in as interim principal this fall, while the district plans to launch a search for a permanent replacement in January.

Cameron arrived in Concord in 2017, inheriting a middle school divided between the longtime Peabody and Sanborn buildings.

By the time he leaves, those two campuses have become one.

In February 2025, students moved into the new $110 million Ellen Garrison Building, bringing the entire middle school community under one roof for the first time in decades. The building officially opened with a ribbon-cutting last June after a project funded through a town appropriation and a Proposition 2½ override.

The move wasn't the only milestone during Cameron's tenure.

Last school year, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education recognized Concord Middle School for returning to pre-pandemic achievement levels in math and English language arts — all while students and staff adjusted to a new building and merged two school communities.

“This tells us what we have put in place is working,” Cameron told Concord-Carlisle News. “We stayed focused on students, kept our expectations high and made sure support was built into the school day.”

Cameron thanked families, volunteers, the Parent Teacher Group and the Concord Education Fund in his farewell message.

Hausermann will lead the school on an interim basis when classes begin this fall, and Superintendent Laurie Hunter said the district expects to begin a permanent principal search in January. No timeline has been announced for filling the position permanently.