Austin ISD
Austin ISD trustees named principals for two new schools scheduled to open next fall at the site of the former Johnston High School, which was closed by the state this year for repeatedly failing to meet state educational standards.

Leading the new science- and math-focused high school will be Connor Grady, who is currently director of the Akins New Tech High Academy. He has been with Austin ISD since 1983, beginning as a science teacher at Crockett High School.

The new global studies school will have Moises Ortiz at the helm. He is now principal of the Harris Academy School of Scientific Inquiry in San Antonio. He has been with the school since 1995.

Azle ISD
Ray Lea, formerly superintendent of Whitesboro ISD, has been named the new superintendent of Azle ISD. In addition to nine years at the top position in Whitesboro, he also has been superintendent of Poteet, Alvord and Whitewright ISDs. Lea’s bachelor’s degree in physical education, master’s degree in public school administration and doctorate in education administration were earned from the University of North Texas.

Carroll ISD
Carroll High School has a new principal. He is Paul J. Giamanco. With 10 years of experience in education, seven as a classroom teacher and three as an administrator, he was most recently associate principal of Coppell High School. Giamanco earned his bachelor of science degree in mathematics from Illinois State University; his master of education degree in educational leadership and policy studies was awarded from The University of Texas at Arlington. Additionally, he is trained in nonviolent crisis intervention and is certified in gifted and talented.

Clear Creek ISD
At its December meeting, the Clear Creek ISD Board of Trustees approved names for two new elementary schools, approved the reconfiguration of an existing ninth grade center to an intermediate school and appointed principals for all three campuses.

Leading Clear Creek Intermediate School as its principal will be Jerry Herd, currently associate principal of La Porte High School. Prior to that assignment, he was assistant principal for curriculum at

Lomax Junior High, also in La Porte. Other positions have included career and technology instructor and basketball coach at Ball High School in Galveston, and agricultural mechanics instructor and basketball coach at Deming (N.M.) High School. Herd received his bachelor of science degree in agriculture and master of arts degree in agricultural and extension education from New Mexico State University; his principal certification was awarded from the University of St. Thomas.

The principal of the new Ralph Parr Elementary School will be Jane Kelling. A teacher and administrator in Clear Creek ISD since 1995, she is currently principal of Armand Bayou Elementary School; prior to that, she was assistant principal of Lloyd Ferguson Elementary and taught fourth grade at Landolt Elementary. Before coming to Clear Creek, she was a classroom teacher in East Baton Rouge (La.) Parish Schools and in Dodge City and Kansas City, Kan. Kelling holds a bachelor of science degree in elementary education from Kansas State University and a master of science degree in administration from Fort Hays State University.

The second new elementary school, Sandra Mossman Elementary, will have Stephanie McBride as its principal. She is currently principal of P.H. Greene Elementary School in Clear Creek ISD; she also has served as assistant principal at Ferguson and Hyde elementary schools. Additionally, she has served as an administrator and classroom teacher in Texas City and Galveston ISDs.

Prior to coming to Texas, McBride taught in schools in California and Louisiana. Her bachelor of science degree in child development was awarded from Northeast Louisiana University, and her master of arts degree in education administration is from California State University.

Additionally, Susan Carpenter will move from her current position as assistant principal of League City Intermediate School to principal of Space Center Intermediate. She has been with Clear Creek ISD since 2002, serving as an elementary resource teacher and intermediate school social studies and theatre arts teacher before taking on administrative duties. Prior to arriving in Clear Creek, she held teaching and administrative posts in Dickinson, Texas City and Santa Fe (Texas) ISDs. Both her bachelor of science degree in interdisciplinary studies and her master of science degree in educational management were awarded from the University of Clear Lake.

Cypress-Fairbanks ISD
Cypress Woods High School’s head tennis coach, Tim Calhoun, was named president of the Texas Tennis Coaches Association (TTCA) at the organization’s annual convention in New Braunfels in early December. He has been active with TTCA, the largest public-school tennis coaches’ association in the country, since 1995, serving as its regional vice president and second vice president. He will remain in his new role for two years, completing his term with two additional years as past president. Calhoun will then remain a member of TTCA’s board until he is no longer an active coach. Calhoun is currently in his seventh year with Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, having served four years at Cypress Ridge High School before coming to Cypress Woods in 2006.

Fort Worth ISD
A realignment of responsibilities has resulted in new duties for three Fort Worth ISD administrators.
Executive Director Cathleen Richardson will add career and technical education (CTE) to her current duties, allowing her to focus on building the district’s CTE program and reinforcing what is seen as a natural alignment between CTE and math.
Donna Jeffries, most recently principal of Western Hills High School, is now executive director of science, health and physical education. An active leader in all areas of Fort Worth ISD’s curriculum reforms, she has been with the district since 1994 and holds certification in chemistry, biology and composite science.
Moving to the position of principal at Western Hills will be current assistant principal James L. Wellman. A graduate of West Virginia State College, he holds a master’s degree in education administration from Texas Christian University. He has been an educator since 1991, joining Fort Worth ISD in 2000 as a volleyball, basketball and golf coach and special education teacher.

Haskell CISD
Bill Alcorn, formerly superintendent of Eden CISD, is the district’s new
superintendent.

Hawley ISD
Glen Coles is the district’s new superintendent. He comes to Hawley from Sterling City ISD, where he served as the high school principal.

Highland Park ISD
Dawson Orr is the new superintendent for Highland Park ISD. Orr was formerly the superintendent in Wichita Falls ISD.
“It is with a great sense of personal and professional excitement that I begin my work in Highland Park,” Orr says. “We are very excited to start our new journey with Dr. Orr as our leader,” says Highland Park ISD School Board President Jeff Barnes. “His track record speaks for itself. He is going to be terrific for Highland Park.”

This will be the third superintendent’s post for Orr, who has served as superintendent in Wichita Falls ISD since 2003 and in Pampa from 1990 to 2003. Orr also has served as president of the Texas Association of School Administrators; he is currently a member of the organization’s legislative committee. He was also a member of the Sid Richardson Foundation Advisory Committee on Teacher Effectiveness. In 2005, Orr was named Key Communicator of the Year by the Texas School Public Relations Association. In 2008, Communities in Schools named Orr Superintendent of the Year.

Lake Travis ISD
After 20 years at Lake Travis ISD, Bob Hart, assistant superintendent for business and financial services, is retiring at the end of June.

"Words can never fully express how thankful I am to have had the opportunity to be a part of such a wonderful school district,” Hart says. “The district has grown and accomplished more than I could have ever imagined when I arrived in Lake Travis in 1988.”
When Hart began working in the district, there were 1,600 students, and the total budget for the school district was approximately $8 million with no “Robin Hood” payments to be made. Today, the Lake Travis ISD budget is approximately $80 million — of which approximately $32 million is returned to the state via Robin Hood payments.

“Since the district’s inception, no single individual has contributed more to the success of LTISD, especially as it relates to the financial strength and integrity of the district,” says Superintendent Rocky Kirk.

Motley County ISD
Coming to Motley County ISD from Blue Ridge ISD is Andrew Seigrist, Motley County’s new superintendent. He was Blue Ridge ISD’s elementary and middle school principal. An educator for 15 years, the past 10 of which have been spent as an administrator, his first principalship was with Allison ISD. During his nine-year tenure in Blue Ridge, academic ratings rose from acceptable to exemplary. In addition to his work as a school administrator, Seigrist has served on the board of directors of the Texas Rural Education Association.

Paducah ISD
Troy Parton has been named the district’s new superintendent. He is formerly of Onalaska ISD.

Pflugerville ISD
Pflugerville High School Assistant Principal of Curriculum and Instruction Angela Barnes has been honored as the Texas Assistant Principal of the Year by the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals. She will represent Texas in the national assistant principal competition later this year. She has been an educator for 17 years, the past 16 of which have been spent at Pflugerville High, where she served as a teacher and grade-level principal before taking on her current role. She also serves on the District Academic Advisory Committee and the Campus Academic Advisory Committee for the school district.

San Marcos CISD
For the second year in a row, Ronda Stonecipher, the district’s director of instructional technology, has been featured as one of T.H.E. Journal’s Innovators of the Year. The magazine notes that she is the only multiple honoree in the awards’ history.
Recognized along with Stonecipher are Miller Junior High Principal Susan Brown, campus technologist Lisa Jones, Math Department head Amanda Voigt, and teachers Natalie Black and Monica Martin.

Stonecipher worked with this team beginning in early 2008, videotaping and analyzing eighth grade students in their mathematics studies. Utilizing “iLearn” booths built by the school’s shop teacher and an Apple MacBook with a built-in Web cam and video-editing software, the cubicles provided a secure and private place for formative evaluation of student learning. Since the installation of the iLearn booths, math scores have risen noticeably at Miller, particularly among at-risk eighth graders, whose pass rate went from 35 percent to 71 percent.

Whitehouse ISD
After serving as Whitehouse ISD’s interim superintendent, Daniel DuPree has taken on the job of superintendent.