Board Chairman Keith Sutton introduced Dr. Merrill, who shook hands with each board member before holding a brief press conference.

The task force was created at the request of Board Chairman Keith Sutton and comprised 19 community leaders with backgrounds ranging from law enforcement to human services.

The group met over a period of six weeks and addressed four main topic areas: Prevention and Mitigation; Preparedness; Response; and Recovery. The group’s recommendations will be considered by the board, as efforts are underway by the district to evaluate all school security issues.

Merrill, un ex-superintendente de Finanzas y el Asistente Superintendente de Recursos Humanos del Condado Wake, comenzó su carrera en 1973 como maestro de Inglés, pasando un total de 16 años en el Condado Wake. Merrill es actualmente el Superintendente de las Escuelas Públicas de la cuidad Virginia Beach, el tercer distrito escolar mayor en Virginia.

“Yo estoy emocionado y honrado de ser elegido como el próximo superintendente del Sistema de las Escuelas Públicas del Condado Wake. Este sistema tiene un legado de rendimiento académico alto de los estudiantes, una comunidad que apoya a sus estudiantes y es visto como un líder en el estado y la nación,” dijo Merrill. “Vamos a seguir proclamando nuestros éxitos estudiantiles y a empujar a cada niño a su próximo nivel de logro académico”.

El Presidente de la Junta, Keith Sutton dijo: “Dr. Merrill describió un programa impresionante de crecimiento para las escuelas del Condado Wake, y trae con él el conjunto de habilidades y conocimiento institucional para dirigir el distrito escolar mayor de las escuelas públicas del estado en una nueva era.”

Antes de su servicio en Virginia Beach, Dr. Merrill sirvió seis años como superintendente del Sistema Escolar Alamance-Burlington.

Dr. Merrill ha ganado numerosos premios y reconocimientos, entre ellos el Premio del 2005 Superintendente del año en Carolina del Norte y  el honor del 2013 Superintendente del año en Virginia. También ha sido elegido miembro del Comité Ejecutivo del Consejo Directivo de la Asociación Americana de Administradores Escolares.

La Escuela de Educación de UNC-Greensboro le otorgó el Premio de Logro Excepcional  y la Escuela de Educación de UNC-Chapel Hill le otorgó el Premio de Liderazgo Distinguido.

Dr. Merrill fue un becario Morehead en UNC-Chapel Hill, obteniendo un título de licenciatura en Inglés secundaria. Obtuvo su título de maestría en administración de la educación de la Universidad Appalachian State y su doctorado de UNC-Greensboro.

Dr. Merrill será el noveno superintendente del Sistema de Escuelas Públicas del Condado Wake desde la fusión de los sistemas escolares de la ciudad y el condado en el 1976.

The Wake County Board of Education voted June 18 to appoint Dr. Jim Merrill as superintendent of the Wake County Public School System, effective August 1.

Merrill, a former Wake County Associate Superintendent of Finance and Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources began his career in 1973 as an English teacher, spending a total of 16 years in Wake County. Merrill is currently Superintendent of the Virginia Beach City Public Schools, the third largest school division in Virginia.

“I am both excited and honored to be chosen as the next superintendent of the Wake County Public School System. This system has a legacy of high student achievement, a community that supports its schools, and is viewed as a leader in the state and the nation,” Merrill said. “We shall continue to herald our student successes and push each child to his or her next level of accomplishment.”

Board Chairman Keith Sutton said, “Dr. Merrill outlined an impressive program of growth for Wake County schools, and brings with him the skill set and institutional knowledge to lead the state’s largest public school district into a new era.”

Prior to his service in Virginia Beach, Dr. Merrill served six years as superintendent of the Alamance-Burlington School System.

Dr. Merrill has earned numerous accolades and awards, including the 2005 North Carolina Superintendent of the Year award and the 2013 Virginia Superintendent of the Year honor. He has also been elected to the Executive Committee of the Governing Board of the American Association of School Administrators. The UNC-Greensboro School of Education awarded him the Outstanding Achievement Award and the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Education honored him with its Distinguished Leadership Award.

Dr. Merrill was a Morehead Scholar at UNC-Chapel Hill, earning a bachelor’s degree in secondary English. He earned his master’s degree in education administration from Appalachian State University and his doctorate from UNC-Greensboro.

Dr. Merrill will become the 9^th superintendent of the Wake County Public School System since the merger of the city and county school systems in 1976.

Response to Instruction is the practice of providing high-quality instruction and interventions matched to student need, monitoring progress frequently to make changes in instruction or goals, and applying child response data to important educational decisions

Dr. Elliott has trained thousands of staff, teachers and administrators in the areas of inclusive schooling that include: linking assessment to classroom intervention, strategies and tactics for effective instruction, curriculum adaptation for students with mild to severe disabilities and collaborative teaching.

Fifty-one WCPSS schools brought teams of four staff members. Administrators worked with Elliott in the afternoon, while other school staff attended breakout sessions on three broad components – professional learning teams, data-based decision making and differentiated instruction.

Staff submitted evaluations on the day’s activities. One person wrote: “This is the best professional development I have attended in my six years in WCPSS.”

Dr. Judy Elliott discussed Response to Instruction in a training session at WCPSS.

Thanks to Jillian Steinbroner for sharing this story.

Bainbridge and Joseph were two of the 140,000 U.S. students who entered scores to be considered for the national competition. Green Hope High sent seven students to the national competitions in Park City, UT.

The students were in timed competitions solving complex problems with one of the tools in the Microsoft Office suite.

Bainbridge  won in the Word 2010 competition and Joseph  won in the Excel 2010 competition. They will go to the World Competition later this summer in Washington, D.C. to compete against students from 50 different countries. Two other Green Hope students had third place finishes: Sean Kelly in Excel 2010 and Ali Khan in Powerpoint 2010.

The Green Hope team included Bainbridge, Joseph, Kelly. Khan, John Sprink, Michelle Sun and Emilie Piatak.

North Carolina became the first state in the nation to offer the Microsoft IT Academy Program in 2010 to all public high schools statewide. In the program, students earn certification as a Microsoft Office Specialist or a Microsoft Certified Professional by completing coursework and passing certification exams. The N.C. program is based on Office 2010.

Thanks to Green Hope teacher Leslie Rael for sharing this story.

Tori committed herself every morning. She never argued with her parents about going, or gave in an urge to play hooky, like some students might do on the day of a big test.

This week, Tori graduated from Green Hope High School with 13 years of perfect attendance.

“When I was young, my parents told me I should go to school, even if I didn’t really want to, or I was feeling just a little bit under the weather,” said Tori, who is 17. But as she got older, it was a commitment knew she wanted to make, even without her parents’ urging.

“I realized it wasn’t work missing educational time and being out of class. I don’t like missing one-on-one time with my teacher. Trying to read the notes later, you don’t get the same thing as being there in person,” Tori said.

Even her freshman year, when Tori’s grandfather passed away, the family arranged the services so that Tori wouldn’t have to miss a day of school.

Walking across the stage at Memorial Auditorium in her cap and gown this week was exhilarating.

“It was a huge sigh of relief, a feeling of huge accomplishment knowing I had completed all 13 years,” she said.

“We’re proud of her for putting forth the effort to commit to something,” her father Charles Bass said. “It takes a lot of effort and perseverance to commit and follow through with that.”

Tori will be following in the footsteps of the other educators in her family, attending UNC-Charlotte this fall to pursue a degree in education. She hopes to become an elementary school teacher.

Rand Road ES is open.

Several of our schools are experiencing power outages this morning. The following schools are expected to regain power around 9 am – West Lake Elementary, West Lake Middle, Holly Springs Elementary, and Middle Creek Elementary. Principals are aware and have safety procedures in place until the power returns.

The American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese (AATSP) promotes the study and teaching of the Spanish and Portuguese languages and their corresponding Hispanic, Luso-Brazilian and other related literatures and cultures at all levels of education.

All recipients of the awards will be recognized in San Antonio, TX at the AATSP national conference on July 8.