Three New principals welcomed
Special to the Gazette
Friday, August 22, 2008
Students and teachers at three Emporia schools were welcomed back this month by principals new to their schools.
Jessica Griffin is the new principal at Lowther South Intermediate School, the district’s fifth-grade center. She is a former classroom teacher and instructional coach at Logan Avenue Elementary. She replaced Nita McLean, who took a principal position in the Kansas City area.
Wade Redeker is the sixth grade principal at Lowther North Intermediate School. He is a former science teacher at Emporia Middle School. He filled a vacancy left by Brian Jordan, who was hired as the Director of Data and Assessments in the Teaching and Learning Department.
Alberto Carrillo is the new principal at William Allen White. He comes to Emporia from the Garden City Public Schools where he was the Resource & Family Liaison for the English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Program. He replaced James Baker, who accepted a job with the Kansas State Department of Education.
Griffin has taught in Emporia schools for eight years. She has served in a variety of leadership roles including second grade math lead teacher, Instructional Council member, Professional Development Council member, and North Central Association Literacy Chairperson at Logan Avenue. She has a bachelor’s degree in elementary and special education and a master’s degree in educational administration from Emporia State University. She also has an endorsement in English as a Second Language instruction.
Redeker has taught for 12 years, the past six at EMS. He served as department chairperson, Professional Learning Community lead teacher, Student Improvement Team leader and a mentor teacher. He has participated in science curriculum review, design, textbook selection and assessment development. He has a bachelor’s degree in secondary education and a master’s degree in educational administration from ESU.
Carrillo worked in the ESOL program at Garden City for two years. He was a first-grade teacher for three years and co-chaired the district’s Dual Language Committee. He has a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and a master’s degree in administration and leadership from Kansas State University. He has an endorsement in Bilingual/ESL education.