Dr. Mario Vanheuckelom

Dr. Mario Vanheuckelom is excited to have been given the opportunity to be the principal at AFNORTH Elementary School and it is his goal to continue to utilize his experience, knowledge, and passion for learning to serve the students and community. He is dedicated to hard work, yet knows that preserving balance between work and home life, and sustaining a good sense of humor are key elements to success.

Dr. Vanheuckelom was born in Belgium, and immigrated to the United States in 1992 at the age of 24. Shortly after becoming a U.S. resident, he began his education at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, California. He received his Bachelor’s Degree in Behavioral Science with a minor in Human Resources from National University, San Diego. He continued his education by earning a Master’s Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Azusa Pacific and received his Doctorate in Organizational Leadership from the University of La Verne in California.

Prior to accepting the position at AFNORTH ES, Dr. Vanheuckelom served as a teacher and an administrator for a total of 13 years in California. Within DoDEA he has served as the principal at SHAPE ES (2010 to 2014), SHAPE MS (2014 to 2019) and Lakenheath MS (2019 to 2022). During his time as a teacher in CA, he gained experience ranging within the K-8 level, one on one home hospital teacher, and teaching adult education. As an administrator he has provided leadership from General Education to the Moderate and Severe level. During his tenure at SHAPE American Elementary, the school was awarded the National Blue-Ribbon School award in 2012.

Dr. Vanheuckelom has been married to his lovely wife Michelle for 30 years, she is also a teacher, and they have three children. The Vanheuckelom family loves traveling, hiking, soccer, and spending time with friends and family.

He has been serving DoDEA for the past 12 years, collaboration with all, supporting DoDEA’s mission, and the vision for our school. He is excited to serve and become part of the AFNORTH community.