Effective July 1, Darrell Wilson will officially become the athletic director, replacing Dwayne Peters after his retirement. Mr. Wilson has previously served as the assistant director for academic activities at VHSL for almost four years, and as an athletic director for Harrisonburg High School for seven years. 

“Mr. Wilson brings a unique set of skills to the table. He has been an athletic director at a very similar school demographically, with lots of socio-economic and cultural diversity. He also has been a director and assistant director at the Virginia High School League. His experience working at the highest level of the league we participate in is immense,” Dr. Brewer said. 

As far as switching from VHSL back into a school setting, Wilson said, “I came to the league anticipating that this will be my final stop [where] I would just continue to work for all our schools as a member of the staff here at the league office. I heard through a friend that Mr. Peters was retiring, and I have known Dr. Brewer since we worked in the same region. It struck me that it would be pretty cool to be able to work with [Dr. Brewer] again,  and Dominion has a great reputation over the years. Opportunity knocked, and I answered the door.” 

Selected among a large pool of candidates interested in the position, Wilson has earned a high level of respect across the Commonwealth. “I have a very high degree of respect for the work that he does. He is so highly respected all across Virginia. He is an exceptional candidate, among an amazing group of exceptional candidates who apply for this job. [Several] things separated and distinguished Mr. Wilson from some of the others,” Brewer said. 

Among those interested in the position, current assistant athletic director Anne Gasser was a finalist. Though she did not get the position, Gasser will be continuing her role at Dominion for the foreseeable future. “[Ms. Gasser] and I spoke last week, and she assured me she’s a Titan for life,” Brewer said. 

Wilson laid out what he wants to do first, “My first goal is to get to know the culture of Dominion and get to know the athletes, the coaching staff, and the community. We want to provide the highest quality programs that we can for them, and so I will really be assessing where we are, and where are some areas that we could improve. High school athletics is really all about students getting opportunities to learn and to grow, and I need to ensure that we are hitting those marks to provide good opportunities for them to improve their skills, not just in sports, but in life.” 

The athletic department has a new initiative led by the VHSL— “The InSideOut Initiative.” Gasser has already begun the initiative, where student-athletes are connected to coaches in an environment of belonging for growth and development.  “[This initiative] is a goal that I have for the athletic department, not just for Mr. Wilson. Ms. Gasser has already done well adopting it, but I am excited for Mr. Wilson to adapt to it as well,” Brewer said. 

Prior to his over three years at VHSL, Wilson held the Harrisonburg High School AD job from 2011-2018. “I’ve always considered myself a servant leader. So I do what is necessary to help others be successful. I’m not afraid to make tough choices and decisions if need be, but I would always rather make those with lots of input from the stakeholders that are involved to ensure that any decision that we’re making is the best way to go. I consider myself more of a coach of the coaches, where I am working with the coaching staff and all of us are growing together and making decisions together wherever we can,” Wilson said. 

“Mr. Wilson’s enthusiasm is fantastic. He knows a lot about Dominion High School— he’s known me, Mr. Peters, and our previous athletic director, Mr. Fleming. He’s been in our region, so he knows about our school. He’s really, really excited about being Truly Titan. He is going to bleed black and silver here, and everybody’s gonna love him,” Brewer said.