Many Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools will see new leadership next school year as the district shifts principals to fill vacancies and honor transfer requests.
The CMS Board of Education approved a flurry of principal appointments for next school year earlier this week, affecting 20 schools — more than 10% of the district’s total.
Of those, 16 either lost or gained a principal as part of a transfer within the district.
In some cases, these transfers created a domino effect. For instance, Principal Stephanie Range of the Charles H. Parker Academic Center is transferring to Greenway Park Elementary School. Darryl Connor of Alexander Graham Middle School will fill the vacancy she leaves. Alicia Hash of Billingsville-Cotswold Elementary will then fill the vacancy Connor leaves at Alexander Graham.
The full list of appointments is here. Here's a rundown of the major changes:
- Erin Barksdale Coles, the current interim principal at Walter G. Byers School, will take over at Hidden Valley Elementary School. The district promoted Erica Lott to lead Walter G. Byers; she is currently an assistant principal at Northwest School of the Arts.
- Kelly Dowdy, currently principal at Elon Park Elementary School, will take over at Carmel Middle School.
- Southwest Middle School's Andrea Foggie and Turning Point Academy Middle School's Walter Clyburn will swap positions.
- River Gate Elementary School's Nizy John will go to Providence Spring Elementary School, where current principal Jane Armbruster has been appointed to South Charlotte Middle School.
- Villa Heights Elementary School's Joyce Fullington was appointed to Clear Creek Elementary School, where current principal Michelle Givens was appointed to South Pine Academy.
- Four schools will see newly promoted principals: Shamrock Gardens, Palisades Elementary School, Rama Road Elementary School, and — as mentioned above — Walter G. Byers.
- One school, Mountain Island Academy, will see a new principal — Dominique Hyde — who was hired from outside the district.
The district told WFAE the public can expect new principal appointments between now and July 1, as it works to fill additional vacancies caused by retirements and other shifts.
