Brunswick athletic director Jeff Ramich sits in the stands at the Camden National Bank Ice Vault in Hallowell during a Feb. 20 game. Ramich is stepping down as Brunswick athletic director to become an assistant principal at Cony Middle School. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal Buy this Photo

BRUNSWICK — Jeff Ramich said he knew it was the right time for a change.

After eight years as Brunswick High School athletic director, Ramich resigned recently because he accepted an assistant principal job at Cony Middle School in Augusta.

Ramich, 54, said he enjoyed his time in Brunswick, but the idea of getting to work with students and faculty at a closer level was too intriguing to pass up.

“I’ve been an athletic director for 18 years, I really want to get back to working with students on a daily basis inside the building,” said Ramich. “I love everything about Brunswick, this is a great community that I will certainly miss being a part of.”

Ramich graduated from Lisbon High School in 1984, before pursuing a physical education degree at the University of Maine in Orono, where he graduated in 1989. He earned his master’s degree in educational leadership from the University of Southern Maine in Gorham in 2006.

Jeff Ramich is the new assistant principal at Cony Middle School in Augusta. Photo provided by Jeff Ramich

Prior to coming to Brunswick, Ramich was the co-curricular director at Gray-New Gloucester and Lisbon. He was also the principal at Philip W. Sugg Middle School in Lisbon, and the athletic director at Leavitt Area High School in Turner.

Ramich said he is looking forward to seeing students on a more daily basis now.

“It feels like I would only see our students when they were academically ineligible or had broken an athletic contract,” he said. “I don’t want to see kids on a negative level, I want to see them on a positive level and develop relationships with them.”

Ramich has overseen some strong Brunswick athletic teams, with the school winning eight state champions and nine regional crowns in his tenure.

“When you win a state championship, you’re the best of the best,” said Ramich. “The numerous championships we’ve won over the past eight years have been nothing short of exciting.”

Jeff Ramich is leaving Brunswick High School after eight years as the school’s athletic director. Ramich accepted a job as an assistant principal at Cony Middle School. Photo provided by Jeff Ramich

Ramich also pointed to the 14 sportsmanship awards the Dragons earned over the years as rewarding.

“My platform as a coach or an athletic director was to respect the sport, the opponents, the officials,” he said. “That’s been one of my top priorities as an athletic director. Winning is awesome, but I also want to win and play with grace.”

Ramich added that he will miss the relationships with his coaches and student-athletes.

“You develop relationships with these people away from the sport, you share each other’s highs and lows, that’s something that will be hard to not be a part of anymore,” he said. “So many people have become near and dear to my heart, that’s something I’ll miss the most.”