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We are excited to welcome Ms. Valarie Kendrick as a partner and leader as the new principal of the Rosie Sorrells School of Education and Social Services at the Yvonne A Ewell Townview Magnet Center.

Ms. Kendrick is from Ridgeland, (a suburb of Jackson) Mississippi and a graduate of Tougaloo College, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in English. Later, she would receive her Master's in Educational Leadership from Dallas Baptist University.

Her career in education began over 30 years ago! This journey officially began in Rome, Georgia, where she taught high school English for ten years. While serving as a teacher in Rome City Schools, she also was active in leading campus-based professional development.

Exactly ten years later, she perused the local paper and saw an advertisement for teachers in the Dallas Independent School District. She applied, was recommended for hire, and relocated to Dallas, continuing her teaching career at Bryan Adams High School. In addition to providing effective instruction in the classroom, Ms. Kendrick served in a variety of roles and was recognized for her efforts as follows:

• Smaller Learning Community Coordinator
• Assistant Principal
• Senior Class Sponsor
• Mentoring Club and LULAC Club Sponsor
• College Board Fellow
• Rotary Club Finalist
• Teacher of the Year
• Interim Principal

After leaving Bryan Adams, she served briefly as the associate principal at Woodrow Wilson before serving in the Â鶹Çøcentral office for one year. When she returned to the campus as an assistant principal, she would serve over-aged middle school students at Barbara Manns Education Center. There she helped to accelerate students' learning to recover credits using a blended learning model.

Her next six years were spent on the elementary level. While serving as the principal, she took her team through Teaching Trust's two-year lead program to build a learning community of trust, improve data practices, provide targeted feedback that improves instructional practice and subsequently increase student achievement, and growing in distributive leadership practices.

After completing this program, Ms. Kendrick sought to enhance student engagement while providing teachers new tools to use in their instructional practice. She and her team applied and was awarded a Personalized Learning pilot grant through our district's Office of Transformation and Innovation. This grant focused on three components: social-emotional learning, blended learning, and project-based learning.

To improve parent partnerships between the school and families, Ms. Kendrick recently applied for and was awarded the Whole School Model-Family Engagement Partnership for the 2020-2021 school year at Birdie Alexander Elementary School.

As a continuous learner, Ms. Kendrick seeks to make a positive difference in the lives she leads and serves. One of her favorite quotes is "Bloom where you are planted." These words often guide her work, reminding her to do the best she can, with what she has, where she is.

Ms. Kendrick is one of eight children. She has one son, Zachary, who is married to Candis. Ms. Kendrick loves to cook, read, laugh, organize, shop online, walk, and create.

Please join me in welcoming our new principal of the Rosie Sorrells School of Education and Social Services at the Yvonne Ewell Townview Center, Ms. Valarie J. Kendrick!