Dr. Shirley B. Prince is currently the executive director for the North Carolina Principals and Assistant Principals’ Association.  Most recently, she served as superintendent of schools in Scotland County for 10 years.   Dr. Prince was the 2007 North Carolina Superintendent of the Year and served as the superintendent advisor for the State Board of Education for two years.  She received the 2007 Trailblazer Award from the North Carolina Association of School Administrators. 

Through her leadership roles in Scotland, Gaston, and New Hanover counties and her involvement at the state level, she has worked extensively on school improvement and as a staff developer in teacher quality, performance evaluation of teachers and principals, leadership development, high school redesign and overall organizational improvement.   She served on the statewide committee that developed the North Carolina performance evaluation standards for principals.  Dr. Prince received the 2008 Distinguished Alumnus Award from the School of Education at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington where she earned her undergraduate and masters degrees.  She earned her doctorate in educational leadership from NC State University in 1993.

Steven Greene’s career includes ten years as a classroom teacher at both elementary and middle school in Massachusetts. As a teacher leader, one of Greene’s highlights was working, for three years, with Robert Marzano on Dimensions of Learning. Following his teaching experience, Greene became a K-12 Curriculum Director for three years and then a building principal. Greene served as a principal for 13 years in both Newton, Massachusetts and Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Since joining NCDPI, Greene was the Director of the Office of Professional Development and currently is the District Transformation Coach for Columbus County Schools. Greene serves on the NSDC Advisory Board for SEAs and a member of the E-Learning Leadership Team for North Carolina.

Beth Ammons has over thirty years in the education field, serving students most of her career in Scotland County. She has served as an elementary teacher, central office instructional facilitator, assistant principal, and principal for the past thirteen years at the elementary and middle school levels.

Under Mrs. Ammons’ leadership at Washington Park Elementary School, students’ academic achievement increased significantly. Students moved from 60% proficient on EOGs to 97% proficient. Washington Park Elementary School was named School of Excellence three years in a row. In 2002, Washington Park was named a National Blue Ribbon School by the U. S. Department of Education. In 2007, Mrs. Ammons was appointed principal of Spring Hill Middle School where she and her staff are currently implementing a plan to create future-ready-classrooms and 21st Century learning environments.

Mrs. Ammons has been recognized as Scotland County Principal of the Year in 2002 and in 2006. She was named finalist in the regional competition in 2006. She has worked extensively with the Partnership for Excellence Inc. group, and she has hosted groups from around the country that were interested in how she and her staff had utilized TQM practices for school improvement. She also has conducted staff development sessions for school administrators in the piedmont and southeastern counties of North Carolina.

Cindy Goodman has 14 years experience as a school administrator at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. She has served as principal of Laurel Hill Elementary School for the past 8 years.

During Mrs. Goodman’s tenure, student achievement at the Title 1school has improved dramatically. On 2008-2009 EOGs, students achieved 75% proficiency in reading and 98% in mathematics. The school has made “high growth” each year. In 2006, Laurel Hill Elementary was named a No Child Left Behind-Blue Ribbon School and in 2007 a team from the Department of Education visited the school and conducted a case study which is posted on their website. In 2007 the school received the ASCD Lighthouse Award and in 2008, the NCASA Trailblazer Award. In 2008, the school was awarded the Governor’s REAL DEAL Award based on results of the Teacher’s Working Conditions Survey.

Mrs. Goodman was selected as the Scotland County Principal of the Year in 2005. She currently serves on the Compliance Commission and on the NCPAPA state board.