Ben Thiel, the new Bluffton Elementary school principal, is originally from the Findlay area and graduated from Liberty Benton HIgh School. He attended Indiana Wesleyan University before transferring to Bluffton University in 2007, where he played football and graduated with a middle childhood education degree.

Ben and his wife Sarah started their teaching careers in Texas. He began his masters coursework at the University of Texas at Arlington and completed Principal Licensure at the University of Findlay.

Ben has taught and coached at Cardington-Lincoln, Columbus Grove and began his administrative career at Cory Rawson Elementary.

Ben and Sarah have three children: Emery, Isaiah, and Jack.