About Us

Ross Thomas

Ross Thomas came to Valley Catholic as principal in 2002 from Spokane, where he worked for twenty-one years at St. George’s School as an English and Latin teacher, Middle and High School principal, college counselor, and athletic director. He began his high-school teaching career at Castilleja School in Palo Alto. He has also taught college English classes at Notre Dame, Gonzaga, Whitworth, and, as a teaching assistant, at Cal Santa Cruz. He has a B.A. and M.A. in English, both from Santa Clara, and studied in doctoral programs in English and Comparative Literature at Notre Dame and Cal Santa Cruz. At St. George’s he coached baseball, cross-country, and girls’ basketball, winning seven State Championships. He appeared in Sports Illustrated’s “Faces in the Crowd” for his basketball team’s Washington state record of 114 consecutive league wins and left St. George’s with another league win streak alive at 67 games. His JV team was undefeated in league in his last 13 years. In 1999 he was named Washington State Cross Country Coach of the Year and in 2011 was inducted into the Washington State Cross Country Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame. He also led four baseball teams to the final eight in State. Ross and his wife Claudia have three sons, all of whom work in education, and one grandson. He enjoys reading, running, and the outdoors.