The new principal of Wakarusa Valley School will no longer have to drive as far to visit relatives, including a daughter in Lawrence.

Donna Black, who has been principal of Swaney School in Derby since 1991, was named Friday to take over at Wakarusa Valley, which is southwest of Lawrence. Her daughter, Jeana, lives in Lawrence.

“I’m from Topeka and also have a lot of family there,” Black said.

She replaces Linda Rogers, who agreed to serve as principal of Riverside School in Lawrence in the upcoming school year. Rogers had been at Wakarusa Valley for 10 years.

Paulette Strong, principal of Quail Run School and a member of the Lawrence district committee that reviewed applicants for the job, said one of Black’s strengths would be her ability to form good relationships with teachers and parents.

She was also impressed by Black’s involvement in a program at the Derby elementary school that integrated technology into the curriculum.

“(It) allowed her to demonstrate a vision for what was possible for her school,” Strong said.

Black has been a teacher or administrator in Kansas public schools for more than 30 years.