March 23, 2025

North Carolina names 2022 Principal of the 12 months

North Carolina names 2022 Principal of the 12 months

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  • The 2022 Wells Fargo Principal of the Year is @DrPatrickGreene @GreeneCentralHS @GreeneCoSchools! #nced
  • From the arts to SEL to the STEM Scholars to the horticulture application, @GreeneCentralHS is a wow. Satisfy the principal @DrPatrickGreene, the 2022 Wells Fargo Principal of the Yr. #nced

Patrick Greene, principal of Greene Central Superior School in Greene County, was named 2022 Wells Fargo Principal of the 12 months at a ceremony in Cary right now.

He explained that his accomplishment as a faculty chief is in big portion because of to a principal from two generations back who took an curiosity in his grandfather — a four-time dropout from the seventh grade. His grandfather attended church with the principal, and the principal served him on weekends and evenings to get caught up in college and graduate. He even bought his grandfather a class ring.

Greene said that taught his grandfather the great importance of schooling. His daughter, Greene’s mom, was first in her class in superior school and went on to faculty even however higher training was not a forgone summary for girls back then.

“She elevated a son who cherished faculty,” Greene said in his acceptance speech. “I’m right here currently, but none of that would have been achievable without having the leadership two generations back of a principal who I really do not even know his name.”

In a press launch from the condition Section of General public Instruction (DPI), Condition Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt stated the adhering to of Greene:

“Patrick trusts scholar leaders to established an illustration for their friends to strengthen their school, and they, in flip, belief him to hear them out and answer genuinely and successfully,” Truitt mentioned.

“He trusts his lecturers to perform challenging and give college students everything they need to improve and do well. And for their portion, teachers have confidence in him to function just as challenging — probably even tougher — to offer and safeguard the kind of finding out setting they want to realize effective instructing and finding out in their school rooms.”

In accordance to the push launch, Greene has been the principal of Greene Central High School for nine decades, and helped go the faculty from one of the state’s least expensive carrying out “to realize substantial development in the two yrs prior to the COVID pandemic, which forced the suspension of university accountability measures.”

Patrick Greene, the principal Matthew Gnau, a previous instructor and mentor with Patrick Miller, the superintendent. Mebane Rash/EducationNC

Greene was one of nine regional finalists vying for the award. The other finalists had been:

  • Northeast: Alison Covington, South Greenville Elementary (Pitt County Colleges)
  • North Central: Keith Richardson, Knightdale Large (Wake County General public Universities)
  • Sandhills: Antonio Covington, East Hoke Middle (Hoke County Faculties)   
  • Piedmont-Triad: KaTrinka Brown, Jackson Middle (Guilford County Educational institutions)         
  • Southwest: Larenda Denien, Idlewild Elementary (Charlotte-Mecklenburg Faculties)     
  • Northwest: Dr. Heather Melton Freeman, North Wilkes Center (Wilkes County Educational institutions)  
  • Western: Dr. Marsha S. Justice, Edneyville Elementary (Henderson County Public Universities)
  • Constitution Faculties: Maria Mills, Carolina Constitution Academy (Angier)

Talking before the announcement, Condition Board of Schooling Vice Chair Alan Duncan said that all the candidates ought to truly feel like they have achieved a little something by getting a regional finalist.

“Your contributions are huge, they are remarkable, and they have been mentioned,” he reported. “You are all winners, and we owe you a great debt on behalf of the state of North Carolina.”

Truitt instructed the viewers that lecturers are the most significant factor in making certain a superior-high quality training for pupils, but that academics just can’t do it without the need of their principals. She called the finalists for principal of the calendar year “multipliers of excellence” in their college properties.

“You’ve been identified for your leadership, your character, and your means to inspire,” she said. “All of you are this kind of astounding illustrations of what general public instruction can be when there is a constant and a trustworthy voice at the top rated.”

Elena Ashburn, 2021 winner and principal of Broughton Superior University in Raleigh, spoke about viewing 38 schools this earlier calendar year, which she mentioned was 1 of the toughest for educators in the state’s record.

“I’m amazingly moved by the point that I saw in each and every one university across our point out,” she claimed. “And what I saw was courage.”

She went on to problem the audience to consider about what they are heading to do to be courageous in making certain a superior-high-quality schooling for all of the state’s pupils.

Greene will obtain $3,000 for individual use and $3,000 for his university and will commit the up coming faculty year traveling the state, according to the press release. The principal of the yr software has been ongoing in North Carolina due to the fact 1984.

Congrats sign from when Dr. Patrick Greene acquired his Ph.D. Mebane Rash/EducationNC

You can observe a video of the presentation underneath.