Superintendent names cabinet; honors teachers

Superintendent of Schools Marlon King (left), Board Chairman Harold Garrett (right) and board members congratulated seven Haywood County teachers who were selected as Teachers of the Year at their respective schools. Honored were (from left) Brett Grant, Academic and Justice Academy; Sarita Johnson, HJH; Wendy Piercey, Sunny Hill; Sarita Poston, East Side Elementary; Valerie Sceals, Haywood Elementary; Krista Parker, Anderson; and HHS teacher Cheryl Moses.

When the Haywood County Board of Education convened Tuesday night, February 10, at its monthly meeting, Superintendent Marlon King named his cabinet appointments and seven teachers received recognition as Teachers of the Year. Board members also received plaques of appreciation from Sunny Hill students and changed the time for future monthly meetings from 6 to 7 p.m.

Superintendent King recently outlined his new organizational structure and opened the application process to fill the positions at the central office. Named to the Deputy Superintendent position was Teresa Russell. School Chancellor of Secondary Education is Dr. Oscar Love from Memphis. Chief Operations Officer is P. J. Angotti, and Executive Director of Human Resources is Toni Eubanks. Vincent Harvell is the Chief Financial Officer, and Executive Director of Federal Programs and Exceptional Children is Jerry Smith. School and Community Relations Ambassador is Art Garrett. Instruction Specialist for Special Education is Mary Hood, and Marjorie Vaulx will serve as Instruction Specialist, Teacher Quality and Accountability. Jean Wills, now the principal at Haywood Elementary, will serve as Instruction Specialist, Elementary Education. Superintendent King said he has not named someone to the Instruction Specialist, Technology position. All but Dr. Oscar Love, Art Garrett and Jean Wills were already in the school’s central office.

Local educators selected by their peers as Teachers of the Year are Anderson, Krista Parker; Haywood Elementary, Valerie Sceals; East Side, Sarita Poston; Sunny Hill, Wendy Piercey; Haywood Junior High, Sarita Johnson; Haywood High, Cheryl Moses; and Academic and Justice Academy, Brett Grant.

Six Sunny Hill students presented board members with plaques of appreciation in honor of School Board Members Appreciation Week, and Superintendent King with a gift.

In other business board members agreed to move all the Catherine Truss Colhoun Trust funds into a Money Market account, and discuss it further at the next meeting. They also approved additional students to take a trip to Washington, D. C., at the end of May, approved several items related to the School Nutrition Program, and approved an agreement with the United Way related to funding for the Resource Centers for Book Jam books.

Visitors at the board meeting included three area board members who were there to assess the Haywood County Board, part of the process for a board to renew its TSBA Board of Distinction status. Dr. Joe Mays from Jackson, Mrs. Eva Drain of Lauderdale County and Ms. Stephanie Gatewood of Memphis City Schools were on the assessment team. The Haywood County Board of Education has held the Board of Distinction designation for many years.

The next monthly meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 10, at 7 p.m.