Our Principal, John J. Santillo, has died at the age of 92 in Dallas, Texas.

Mr. Santillo was born Sept. 30, 1918, and he went to be with his Lord on Wednesday, June 15, 2011.

Mr. Santillo was part of the Dallas Independent School District for 41 years, before retiring in 1988. He held various positions with the district. For 16 years, he was assistant superintendent of personnel. He was personally responsible for hiring 8,000 to 10,000 teachers and administrators during that time. At the time of his retirement, he was responsible for overseeing the teacher competency testing program for the district.

Mr. Santillo was the second principal of W.T. White High School in Dallas, He served in that position from 1966-1969 during which he established the first PTSA (Parent-Teacher-Student Association) in the Dallas School District. He used to say he added the "S" to the PTA because he wanted students to work together with parents and teachers to improve their schools.

Before going to W.T. White High School, Mr. Santillo served as principal of Jefferson Davis Elementary School from 1951-1956 and principal of W.E. Greiner Junior High School from 1958-1966.

During his tenure in the administration of DISD, Mr. Santillo initiated testing for teacher competency for which DISD received much commendation and nationwide publicity. He was invited to be a guest lecturer at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, to address school board members and state superintendents regarding the establishment of competency testing in DISD. He was also a lecturer for Texas Personnel Administrators and Superintendents. The State of Texas now requires competency testing for all teachers and administrators.

Mr. Santillo served as president of the Texas Association of School Personnel Administrators in 1974. He was also president of The Dallas School Administrators Association from 1968-1970. He served in various capacities in PHI DELTA KAPPA, the Southern Association of Schools and Colleges, and The National School Evaluation Committee. John received a Bachelors and Masters Degree from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois and a Masters of Education and Supervision from Southern Methodist University.

Mr. Santillo is survived by his niece, Madeline Bairunas, of Yorkville, Illinois; His nephew, Bernard Bleizeffer and his wife Carol, of Greenwood, Indiana; his niece, Joan Shain, of Bakersfield, California; his former wife, Agnes C. Santillo; and numerous other relatives and friends. In lieu of flowers the family is requesting that donations be made to the Dallas Chapter of the American Cancer Society.

A time for his family to receive friends was Sunday, June 19, 2011 from 5 to 8 PM, with Rosary recited at 7:00 PM at Calvary Hill Funeral Home, 3235 Lombardy Ln., Dallas, Texas. A Funeral Mass was held on Monday, June 20 at 11:00 A.M. at St. Rita Catholic church, 12521 Inwood Road, Dallas, Texas with Rev. Msgr. Robert M. Coerver officiating.