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Tom was born in Plainfield, New Jersey on June 15, 1946. He went to Watchung Borough School and then to Watchung Hills Regional High School. In 1963, the Welsh family moved from New Jersey to Mt. Dora, Florida. Tom finished high school at Mt. Dora High School in 1964 and did his undergraduate work in
Mathematics Education (1967) and, subsequently, earned a masters degree (1969) in Counselor Education, both at Florida State University. He was a teacher of mathematics at Nova High School in Ft. Lauderdale during the 1967-1968 school year
before returning to graduate school. In 1970, Tom accepted a position as a guidance counselor at Stilwell Junior High School in Jacksonville, Florida. The 1972-1973 school year was as a
counselor at Terry Parker High School. The years of 1973 through 1976 were spent as a counselor at Landon Junior High School. From June of 1976 through August of 1981, Tom was an Air Traffic Controller with the Federal Aviation Administration and was stationed at the Jacksonville Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZJX) in Hilliard, Florida, just outside Jacksonville. Following the strike of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO), in August of 1981, Tom was fired by the federal government and returned to education as a counselor at Paxon High School, in Jacksonville. In January of 1982, Tom was appointed as Coordinator of Student Information Management Systems (SIMS) with the Duval County Public Schools. He was promoted to Supervisor of Test Analysis and Reporting in August of 1984. In 1988, Tom sought a change in responsibilities and was appointed as Principal of Pickett Elementary School in August. In January 1992, he was moved to Henry F. Kite Elementary School. In July of 1994, he was moved to Cedar Hills Elementary School. In 2000, after completing 12 years as an elementary principal, Tom was asked to move back to the district office and was named Principal on Special Assignment for Research and Evaluation. The rank of Principal on Special Assignment was subsequently abolished and Tom was named Director of Research Services in August of 2001. In June of 2008, Tom retired from that position after 34 years in public education. In July of 2008 he moved to Salisbury, Maryland. Following the death of Lydia's mother in 2018, Tom and Lydia moved to Wyomissing, Pennsylvania in May of 2019 Academic Competition: For 19 years, through 2008, Tom was the moderator of the televised Academic Competition in Duval County, "Brain Brawl". [A show from 1997 can be seen here.] He was a Coordinating Judge and Reader with the Commissioner's Academic Challenge (CAC) in Florida from 1997 to 2014 and filled the same roles with the Panasonic Academic Challenge (PAC) from 1997-2008. In 2017, he was invited to resume his duties with the CAC. Sister Cities: Tom was active with Jacksonville Sister Cities Association (1995-2008), completing trips to sister cities Murmansk, Russia (1995) and Port Elizabeth, South Africa (1999). Frequently a member of the board and twice Treasurer, in June, 2008, Tom was named Volunteer of the Year of Jacksonville Sister Cities Association. Since moving to Salisbury, MD, Tom has become active with Salisbury Wicomico Sister Cities, maintaining their website. In May of 2013, he attended the Mayor Making Ceremony in Salisbury, England. Accreditation: Following a hiatus of several years, Tom returned to active status with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS CASI) and the parent organization AdvancEd in October, 2006, serving on the Quality Assurance Review Team (QART) which recommended district-wide accreditation for Broward County, Florida. Subsequently, Tom served on the QART for Talladega County, AL (Mar 2007) and St. Johns County, FL (Oct 2007). Certified to chair, he led the committee recommending accreditation for Columbia High School in Lake City, FL (Apr 2008). Family: In August, 1974, Tom married Lydia Maud Engle, of Snow Hill, Maryland, who was then a teacher at Highlands Junior High School in Jacksonville. In September of 1978, Katherine Victoria Welsh was born. Kate married Sal Ferrarello in April of 2003 and, as a Physician's Assistant, is practicing dermatology medicine in the Reading, Pennsylvania area. Tom and Lydia have two grandsons, Dominic (2008), and Leo (2011). Community Service: From January, 2012 to July, 2015, Tom served as Chairman of the Salisbury Traffic and Safety Advisory Committee. Stage: Tom has appeared in The Community Players of Salisbury (CPOS) productions as Sir Henry Angetell in "The Hollow" (June, 2011), Reporter #6 in "Chicago" (November, 2011), Major Metcalf in "The Mousetrap" (February, 2012), Dr. Grimwig for "Oliver" (November, 2012), and in the chorus of "The Wizard of Oz" in June, 2013. He most recently appeared in "The Man Who Came to Dinner" in April of 2015, and has maintained their website since September of 2016. Since 2013, Tom has participated in several radio dramas for Delmarva Public Radio. In May of 2019, following the move to Pennsylvania, Tom continues to maintain the CPOS website. In the summer of 2018, we both submitted DNA samples to "23 and Me." Tom's lineage is:
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