If Rosaryville Elementary School Principal Rhonda Green’s words are any indication, students might see her dishing out food in the cafeteria or helping clean the building.
Green is one of 28 newly announced Prince George’s County Public School principals, and she said she intends to be “very hands-on” in her approach.
“I believe in rolling up my sleeves and working alongside the teachers and the custodians and the cafeteria workers,” Green said. “I’m a team player. Every job is equal because without any one part, we are not effective.”
For the past three years, Green has been an assistant principal at Robert R. Gray Elementary School, and she has worked in the school system since 1999.
Of the 28 new principals, all but two are coming from jobs in the Prince George’s school system. There are 207 schools in the county.
“In many cases, principals are aware of teachers or faculty who are in the school currently and are looking to step up,” schools spokesman John White said.
According to Randy Thornton, the system’s director of human resources, more than 200 people applied for the vacancies. All the new principals, Thornton said, have been principals, assistant principals or have held comparable positions for at least three years.
Before hiring the principals, Thornton said, schools officials sought input from teachers, staff and parents about the type of leader they wanted at theirschool.
Thornton said the school system wants its principals to have integrity, an ability to work with parents and community members, and the talent to “develop, articulate and implement a vision of learning.”
With the school year set to begin next month, new Bowie High School Principal Jane Spence is anxious to see results.
“I expect that fantastic things are going to happen,” she said. “And it’s almost that I wish we already had the results in from the things we are going to try this year.”
