Golden Bear Reflections: Tom Lombardi, Class of 2006

Twenty years ago, Tom Lombardi was a student walking the halls of Upper Arlington High School. Today, he leads that same school as its principal — a full-circle journey he describes as the honor of a lifetime.

Lombardi, a member of the Upper Arlington High School Class of 2006, looks back on his K-12 experience with gratitude for the teachers, opportunities and activities that helped shape who he is today.

“I had such a good experience, really K-12, in Upper Arlington with all the educators that I came into contact with,” Lombardi said. “I wanted to be able to give that back to the community and to other kids.”

As a student, Lombardi was involved in a variety of activities, including student council, athletics and Kickin’ It Live. He said those experiences, along with what he learned in the classroom, gave him opportunities to grow in many different areas.

“I received incredible lessons and lifelong opportunities in many, many different areas — in the classroom and outside of the classroom, athletics, clubs,” he said. “I think that kind of well-roundedness really made me who I am today.”

Lombardi’s path to becoming an educator began during his senior year at UAHS. In an English class with Dameion Wagner, students completed an assignment exploring potential careers. At the time, Lombardi wasn’t sure what he wanted to do.

“Through that assignment and exploring the careers, I realized that education is what I wanted to do,” he said.

He went on to Ohio University, graduating in 2010 with an integrated social studies degree and plans to become a social studies teacher. When teaching jobs were difficult to find at that time, particularly for social studies teachers, Lombardi took a different path for a few years. But his goal remained the same.

“I knew I wanted to be an educator,” he said. “That’s where my heart was and that’s where my passion was.”

Along the way, Lombardi worked in different roles and met people who made a lasting impact on him personally and professionally. Eventually, that journey brought him back to Upper Arlington.

Today, he has the opportunity to lead the high school that helped shape his own educational experience.

“To think just a short 20 years ago I was a kid in the halls, and now I get to lead the building, the teachers and really the community at the high school level is really the honor of a lifetime,” Lombardi said.