David Cochrane on Monday was announced as the new assistant principal at Mexico High School. He starts July 1.

He currently is a business, personal finance and business law teacher for the Columbia School District at Battle High School.

Cochrane has taught for the past 10 years. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri and his masters’s from Southeast Missouri State University.

Cochrane’s parents were his inspiration to be a teacher, according to a news release. They live in Kirksville and his father was the Truman State University track coach, while his mother is a retired reading recovery teacher.

“School systems in towns like Mexico provide opportunities for the community to celebrate and, as we have seen recently, can help hold a community together in times of need or crisis,” Cochrane said in the release. “That special connection between a school and the community it represents is something I am very excited to be a part of.”