Ten educators will be part of the 2013-14 cohort of the UT Leadership Academy.
The Leadership Academy, a collaborative venture between UT and Knox County Schools, prepares educators to become outstanding new school principals through a full-time, intensive fifteen-month fellowship program. The class will begin work on May 31.
Thirty-one educators have gone through the program since its inception in 2010. Eight of those fellows are currently head principals in Knox County schools.
The Leadership Academy is a part of the UT Center for Educational Leadership, which is housed in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in the UT College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences.
The 2013-14 fellows will spend four days a week working in a school with an experienced mentor principal. The fifth day will be spent in course work and seminars with professors and expert practitioner partners.
To complete the program, students participate in a project that integrates everything they learn at the academy. That project must include an electronic portfolio documenting their proficiency in school leadership and a public presentation about the fifteen-month experience. Fellows graduate from the program with a master’s or education specialist degree and a state principal license.
The 2013-14 cohort class:
Brad Corum has been an assistant principal at West Valley Middle School for four years. Previously, he was an assistant principal with both Karns and Powell Middle Schools. He has a master’s degree in educational administration and supervision from Lincoln Memorial University.
Tara Howell-Spikes is a first grade lead teacher at Mount Olive Elementary School and a district-wide first grade mentor teacher for Knox County Schools. She has nearly a decade of experience with Knox County Schools and holds an education specialist degree in education administration and supervision from Lincoln Memorial University.
Christopher James is a special education teacher at Fulton High School. He worked at Robert L. Osborne High School in Marietta, Georgia, from 2006 to 2011. He has a master’s degree in education with a concentration in special education from the University of Phoenix.
Shelly McGill is an assistant principal at Carter Elementary School. She has been with Knox County Schools since 2006, when she began at Brickey-McCloud Elementary School. McGill has an education specialist degree in education administration and supervision from Lincoln Memorial University.
Dexter Murphy has been with Pond Gap Elementary School since 2009 where he is a fifth grade teacher and mentor teacher. He has a master’s degree in educational curriculum and instruction from Lincoln Memorial University.
Megan O’Dell is an assistant principal at Brickey-McCloud Elementary. She has a master’s degree in teaching from Tusculum College and has served in various roles with Knox County Schools since 2004.
J. Scott Reed is a lead teacher for Knox County Schools. Previously, he worked in special education at Richard Yoakley Alternative School. He has a master’s degree in educational administration from UT.
Melissa Stowers works as a graduation coach at Carter High School. She has been with the Knox County Schools since 2004, when she began as an English instructor at West High School. She holds a master’s degree in secondary education from UT.
Janene Ward is an instructor in South College’s School of Education. She has delivered several presentations relative to TEAM (Tennessee Educator Acceleration Model) and Teacher Advancement Program in several states. She has a master’s degree in education from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Steven York is a sixth grade science teacher and team leader at West Valley Middle School, where he has worked since 2008. He worked at Sedgefield Middle School in Goose Creek, South Carolina, for five years. He is enrolled in the Educational Specialist program at UT.
For photos and more information about the fellows, visit the Knox County Schools website.
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C O N T A C T S :
Lola Alapo (865-974-3993, lalapo@utk.edu)
Melissa Ogden (865-594-1905 melissa.ogden@knoxschools.org)