WCPS To Honor Top Staff At Virtual Celebration

WCPS To Honor Top Staff At Virtual Celebration

On May 6, Wayne County Public Schools will hold a virtual celebration to honor the district’s 2021 Teacher of the Year, Assistant Principal, and Principal of the Year. With the first round of interviews complete, finalists for the Teacher of the Year, Assistant Principal and Principal of the Year programs have been named – one each from the elementary, middle, and high school level. They include:

Teacher of the Year – Finalists

Category

Name

School

Position

Elementary

Susan Long

Grantham Elementary

Kindergarten

Middle

Stephanie Gall

Brogden Middle

English/Language Arts

High

Patricia Velasco

Goldsboro High

Science

Assistant Principal of the Year – Finalists

Category

Name

School

Elementary

Christy G. Straughan-Haley

Grantham Elementary & Grantham Middle

Middle

Laura Kester

Norwayne Middle

High

Michael Jones

Southern Wayne High

Principal of the Year – Finalists

Category

Name

School

Elementary

Julie West

Northeast Elementary

Middle

Damesha Smith

Brogden Middle

High

Freda Allen

Wayne Early Middle College High

 

 

 

Teacher of the Year Finalists

  • Susan Long, has 14 years of education service and has served at Grantham Elementary since 2007.
  • Stephanie Gall has four years of education service and has served at Brogden Middle since 2017.
  • Patricia Velasco has 31 years education service, 15 with WCPS, and has served at Goldsboro High since 2006.

Assistant Principal of the Year Finalists

  • Christy G. Straughan-Haley has 28 years of education service, transitioning to school administration in 2013. Straughan-Haley has been the assistant principal of Grantham Elementary and Grantham Middle since August 2020.
  • Laura Kester has 14 years of education service, transitioning to school administration in 2018. Kester has been an assistant principal at Norwayne Middle since 2018.
  • Michael Jones has 17 years education service, transitioning to school administration in 2016. Jones holds a National Board Certification has been an assistant principal at Southern Wayne High since 2019.

Principal of the Year Finalists

  • Julie West has 28 years of education service, transitioning to school administration in 2012. West has been principal of Northeast Elementary since 2016.
  • Damesha Smith has 18 years of education service, transitioning to school administration in 2012. Smith has been principal of Brogden Middle since 2016.
  • Freda Allen has 25 years of education service, transitioning to school administration in 2011. Allen holds a National Board Certification and has served as principal of Wayne Early/Middle College High since 2016.

The district’s 2021 Teacher of the Year, Assistant Principal of the Year and Principal of the Year will be announced at a virtual celebration on May 6 at 4 PM. The event will be streamed via the district’s WCPS Live youtube channel. The district’s Teacher of the Year program is part of the state and national Teacher of the Year program. Each candidate is first named a Teacher of the Year at their school. Like the Assistant Principal and Principal of the Year programs, a selection committee interviews each school’s candidate to determine the district finalists. A follow-up interview of each finalist will help determine who is named the WCPS Teacher of the Year.

The Principal of the Year and Assistant Principal of the Year programs are facilitated through the district’s Human Resources Department and the Wayne County Principals and Assistant Principals Association (WCPAPA). Both the WCPS Teacher of the Year and Principal of the Year will move on to a regional competition, which is the next stage of the state-level competitions.

Below is the complete list of each school-level Teacher of the Year selected to represent their school in the coming school year:

School

Teacher of the Year

Brogden Middle

Stephanie Gall

Brogden Primary

Stephanie Moody

Carver Elementary

Kelly Herring

Carver Heights Elementary

Brenda McClary

Charles B. Aycock High

Matthew Radford

Dillard Middle

Tondalayo Clark

Eastern Wayne Elementary

Andrea Wooten

Eastern Wayne High

Jonathan Pollock

Eastern Wayne Middle

Jennifer Fricks

Edgewood Community Developmental School

Cindy Sprouse

Fremont Elementary

Camille Frederick

Goldsboro High

Patricia Velasco

Grantham Elementary

Susan Long

Grantham Middle

Kimberly Denning

Greenwood Middle

Robin Bryant

Meadow Lane Elementary

Leslie Mooring

Mount Olive Middle

Donald Selah

North Drive Elementary

Apryl Ransom

Northeast Elementary

Stephanie Washburn

Northwest Elementary

Jennifer Tingen

Norwayne Middle

Anna Jarrett

Rosewood Elementary

Brittany Ingram

Rosewood High

Tonya Sittig

Rosewood Middle

Ashley Sparks

Southern Wayne High

Jason Cox

Spring Creek Elementary

Amber Duke

Spring Creek High

Denise Williams

Spring Creek Middle

Carl Whittington

Tommy’s Road Elementary

Kimberly Court

Wayne Early/Middle College High

Elizabeth Breedlove

Wayne Middle/High Academy

Sheneka Lassiter

Wayne School of Engineering

Katherine Hobbs

Share

Events