Transition Team 2016-17 Executive Summary

SUPERINTENDENT’S
TRANSITION TEAM
2016-17

SOAR
TO
GREATNESS

EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
Soon after her appointment as superintendent
to the Guilford County Schools (GCS) in 2016,
Sharon L. Contreras, Ph.D., brought together
a group of state, national and local volunteers
to form a Transition Team that would help shape
priorities for the GCS 2020 Strategic Plan.
The team, which was comprised of more than 95 individuals from
diverse sectors, included PreK-20 educators, current and former
superintendents, college and university leaders, GCS administrators
and teachers, representatives from private businesses, philanthropic
foundations and non-profit organizations, local and state government
officials, parents and community members, teacher association leaders
and faith representatives.
This diverse group shared two common goals – a commitment to
excellence and a desire to help the superintendent advance achievement
and opportunity for all students. Harold L. Martin, Ph.D., Chancellor,
North Carolina A&T State University, and James Merrill, Ed.D.,
Superintendent, Wake County Public School System, co-chaired the
team. Elizabeth “Betty” Morgan, Ph.D., served as the team’s facilitator.
Transition Team members were serious of purpose and conducted a
thorough review of the following areas: Student Achievement; School
Choice, Equity and Excellence; Talent Development; and, Organizational
Effectiveness for Optimal Learning. Carrying out its work in four,
independent sub-committees, and utilizing both quantitative and
qualitative methods of inquiry, the team sought to determine current
status, identify strengths and challenges and formulate recommendations
based upon its analyses.
1

STRENGTHS
& CHALLENGES
After meeting with focus groups, making site visits, conducting
numerous personal interviews, engaging in deep discussions, reviewing
data, consulting outside experts, and examining multiple documents
and system policies to gather input, the sub-committee members
documented existing strengths across the district. They also discovered
significant challenges. These strengths and challenges are described in
this executive summary.
2

STUDENT
ACHIEVEMENT
The sub-committee found that the
district’s main assets are its educators.
At present, many GCS students are
achieving individual, educational
excellence. Nearly 90 percent of
students graduate within four years,
and 55 percent are completing courses
of high rigor. The district’s longstanding
commitment to visual and performing
arts, as well as its emphasis on socialemotional
learning and character
development were noted as positive
benefits for students.
While sub-committee members found
that many students and families are
being served well, particularly those
enrolled in higher-level courses and
enrichment programs, they also noted
that there are far too many who are
not reaping the same benefits. The
gaps among schools performing at
proficiency levels on the end-of-grade
(EOG) assessments and end-of-course
(EOC) assessments are concerning,
as are the gaps between various
groups of students, which need to be
addressed with a sense of urgency.
This is particularly true for students of
color, students living in poverty, English
language learners and students with
disabilities – the students who make up
the majority of the district’s enrollment.
SCHOOL CHOICE,
EQUITY AND
EXCELLENCE
The fact that Guilford County Schools
already has in place magnet/choice
schools and programming is a major
strength, as is its robust array of
career and technical (CTE) education
courses.
More than 5,000 citizens attend the
annual GCS Choice Showcase and there
is a strong demand for specialized
schools and programs with waiting
lists to attend many schools. Currently,
the district offers magnet options in
25 elementary and middle schools
and choice options in 21 high schools.
Last school year, 5,893 students took
advantage of magnet options and
12,674 GCS students took one of 111
CTE courses organized into 14 career
clusters. Of those CTE students,
7,567 took more than one course and
5,316 earned industry recognized
credentials.
“While CTE
participation is
high, the district
appears to have
chosen to provide
a breadth of
offerings over
depth, and as a
result, students
do not benefit
as much as they
could from more
clearly defined and
articulated career
pathways.”
While CTE participation is high, the
district appears to have chosen to
provide a breadth of offerings over
depth, and as a result, students do not
benefit as much as they could from
more clearly defined and articulated
career pathways from elementary
school through college. Some CTE
courses appear to teach outdated
skills, while others focus on low-skill,
low-wage credentials and jobs that will
not help students achieve economic
independence as adults. As a result,
the CTE program is not keeping pace
with the demands of the current
global economy, much less preparing
students adequately for future
demands.
Both magnet/choice schools and CTE
programs lack the resources needed to
enable schools and programs to carry
out their specialty missions. Facility
issues and outdated equipment are
constraining growth of popular and jobfocused
programming, and academic
rigor is lacking in many courses.
In its current state, for example,
the Weaver Academy facility is
inadequate to support both the visual
and performing arts and CTE, and
may warrant replacement with a new
facility that would truly support 21st
century learning needs. The lack of
current technologies, equipment and
instructional materials and supplies
also hamper the growth of both
programs, despite outstanding efforts
by teachers and school leaders.
Site-based application and enrollment
processes, guidance procedures,
access to information, student
assignment policies and other behindthe-scenes
systems also conspire to
constrain and restrict student access
to magnet/choice and CTE programs.
This has created inequities and
further contributed to the district’s
longstanding achievement gaps
between schools and among different
student demographic groups.
TALENT
DEVELOPMENT
Among many strengths found in this
area, the sub-committee found that
a majority of GCS teachers view their
work positively, trust their leaders,
feel the performance evaluation
process is fair and exhibit a passion for
helping students achieve at high levels.
Teachers report feeling supported,
trusted and respected and an
overwhelming majority of respondents
feel that teachers are held to high
professional standards in the district.
3

Among the major challenges is the fact
that teacher turnover rates remain
high, especially in the first 10 years
of service, which places a demand on
the system to fill vacancies; therefore,
developing newly hired teachers is
another major challenge. Respondents
report that GCS salaries are not
competitive regionally or nationally,
despite adding a local supplement to
the state’s average teacher pay, which
ranks 41st nationally. Respondents
also noted that working conditions in
some schools (designated planning
time and the opportunity to collaborate
and engage in improving instruction)
limit teacher effectiveness and school
performance.
The principal pipeline is equally
challenging, with North Carolina
ranking last out of 50 states in pay for
school leaders. With more than 50
percent of GCS leaders at or within five
years of retirement age, and with fewer
young people pursuing education as a
career in North Carolina and nationally,
it is clear that the traditional career
paths for educators and administrators
are insufficient to meet current and
future demands. As research indicates
that principal leadership and teacher
effectiveness are the two most potent
drivers of better student learning and
life outcomes, recruiting top talent
to GCS is perhaps the district’s most
critical need.
ORGANIZATIONAL
EFFECTIVENESS FOR
OPTIMAL LEARNING
GCS has a student-focused school
board and a lean management
approach, with nearly all operational
areas scoring well on key performance
measures in comparison with other
peer member districts of the Council of
Great City Schools (CGCS). According
to GCS data, a 2015 fiscal analysis by
“The district’s
financial system is
more than 20 years
old and does not
interface with the
equally outmoded
human resources
and payroll
systems.”
Schoolhouse Partners emphasized this
point, noting that 95.9 percent of all
district expenditures focus on program
activities tied to the core business
of the school district – teaching and
learning.
Although the majority of district
resources are dedicated to teaching
and learning, the sub-committee
identified several inefficiencies that
are impeding the district’s ability to
better resource these efforts. A chronic
lack of investment in core operational
areas and infrastructure is costing the
district money in terms of the higher
personnel costs, duplication of efforts
and increased reliance on manual
processes due to inadequate and
outmoded technologies and systems.
For example, the district’s financial
system is more than 20 years old and
does not interface with the district’s
equally outmoded human resources
and payroll systems. At the same
time, the inadequate size and scope of
the district’s maintenance facility for
school buses, penalize the district’s
state efficiency rating, resulting in
GCS receiving less state funding than
comparable districts in North Carolina.
Lastly, while the school board’s
magnet/choice school transportation
policies reflect a commitment to
equity that needs to be maintained,
other savings might be available by
combining services or other innovative
approaches. In addition, the district’s
longstanding emphasis on site-based
decision making has expanded beyond
the current research regarding school
leader efficacy, and thus limits the
most effective deployment of resources
and capital for supporting teaching and
learning to improve student outcomes.
While central office leaders and
staff members are perceived as
knowledgeable and responsive, the
district’s current organizational
structure lacks cohesion in terms of
its support for teaching and learning.
Supervisory duties in multiple areas
go beyond recommended levels for
effective monitoring, evaluation and
improvement.
4

RECOMMENDATIONS
Each of the Transition Team’s four sub-committees generated
multiple recommendations to address the district’s challenges
while simultaneously preserving GCS’ many strengths. Some
recommendations are intended for immediate action, while others
are to be considered for implementation over a longer period-of-time.
Recommendations range from easily achieved, minor changes that
may be accomplished quickly to more complex initiatives that will
require major shifts in the way GCS does business.
5

STUDENT
ACHIEVEMENT
SCHOOL CHOICE,
EQUITY AND
EXCELLENCE
TALENT
DEVELOPMENT
• Existing achievement gaps between
groups of students and gaps among
schools must be addressed with
urgency. The district must create
greater equity and access to rigorous
coursework at all levels. Current
levels of instruction outside of IB and
AP classes are far too low.
• The district must create an
instructional framework to ensure
consistency in implementing an
aligned and well-paced curriculum
across the system.
• More work is needed to accelerate
college and career readiness.
College and career readiness is
fundamental to a student’s future
success in life, and will demand
much energy and attention on the
part of the school system to bring
about improvement. The district
should form new partnerships with
industry, community colleges and
four-year colleges/universities for
career preparation.
• A major theme and challenge in GCS
remains the low performance of
students in reading and math, and
the fact that students perform below
state and national standards on
major measures. The district should
leverage national expertise to aid in
turning around lower-performing
schools and improving instruction in
the elementary and middle grades.
• The district’s data points to
challenges with the district’s core
instructional program and the need
for deeper investments in curriculum
development, instructional
resources, and professional
learning.
• The district should dedicate
resources to create an office to
oversee and evaluate magnet/
choice schools, increase diversity
and ensure more equitable access.
A majority of magnet/choice schools
and programs suffer from lack of
diversity, and there is currently
no framework or plan to enhance
diversity, equity and inclusion.
• While magnet/choice schools enjoy
popularity among students, parents,
and stakeholders in GCS, the school
system needs to strengthen entry
and admission procedures, and
expand programming to ensure
equitable choice in all areas.
• The district would benefit from a
thorough program evaluation of all
existing magnet/ choice programs
and CTE courses/pathways to ensure
relevancy, rigor and equity of access.
CTE pathways should all align to
high demand, high-wage jobs and
credentials.
• The district’s CTE pathway
completion rate is low for its size,
and is not responsive to the region’s
growing industry sectors and
economic development clusters.
• The committee recommends that
the district consider the addition of
choice programs such as a PTECH
high school, a public safety academy,
a coding academy, and increased
access to technology and STEMrelated
courses and pathways.
• The district must recruit, retain and
reward the best teachers in order to
impact student outcomes.
• Guilford County teachers report a
desire for competitive pay. Currently,
district compensation for teachers
and principals is not competitive on
a regional, state or national level.
• A large majority of educators
reported limited opportunities
for growth, the lack of formalized
pathways for advancement and a
desire for coaching on how to achieve
promotions. This will necessitate a
system for preparing and grooming
faculty for leadership roles and the
deployment of a “career ladder.”
National models such as Opportunity
Culture should be examined as
options for executing this strategy.
• A significant challenge is the high
attrition rate of teachers in their
first 10 years of service. This is an
issue not only because of the talent
“drain,” as it takes much time,
resources and energy to develop
teachers in their first years in the
system, but also the continual need
to recruit, develop and retain a new
group of teachers weighs heavily
on staff and expends much time
and energy which could be directed
elsewhere.
• All certified and classified
employees could benefit from a
strong human capital management
strategy that aligns recruitment,
hiring, onboarding, development,
and incentives/benefits functions.
Guilford County Schools is currently
in a war for talent and must retain
and develop its most valuable asset,
its people.
6

ORGANIZATIONAL
EFFECTIVENESS
FOR OPTIMAL
LEARNING
OVERARCHING
THEMES FROM
SUB-COMMITTEE
RECOMMENDATIONS
• In terms of governance, the subcommittee
recommends that the
Board of Education reaffirm its
core values and mission statement
to drive short-term and long-term
goals, plans and initiatives. This will
require increased Board of Education
development, policy analysis and
oversight of major academic and
business operations in the system
to ensure accountability (results)
and integrity (quality) of various
departments.
• The Board of Education should
develop a theory of action that will
drive comprehensive and continuous
improvement for educational
outcomes and implore the county
commissioners to fund these efforts.
• Enhance collaborations and
partnerships with city and county
agencies, such as joint projects,
services, purchasing, performance
contracting and increase
relationships with outside entities
that can provide specific, targeted
services to help accomplish GCS
goals.
• Conduct a comprehensive study
of all facilities and renovate facilities
for 21st century learning.
• Invest more consistently and
equitably in technology and critical
infrastructure systems, both in
central administration and in
schools.
• Develop a vision and mission that can
propel GCS to world-class levels and
create a strategic focus to unite the
system as one.
• Develop of a theory of action by the
school board that drives educational
decisions that assures equitable
outcomes for students, reduces
disproportionality, and closes
achievement gaps.
• Graduate more students who are
truly college and career ready by
defining what is meant by college
and career readiness, creating
grade-level expectations for each
content area, developing curriculum,
aligning classroom resources
and assessments and increasing
equitable student opportunity
and choice.
• Expand student access to equitable
and excellent schools and programs
districtwide. Strengthen and expand
CTE pathways and choice options
while also evaluating and ultimately
closing ineffective, under-subscribed
and/or outdated courses, choices
and options.
• Increase strategic investments in
professional learning, facilities,
instructional technology and
classroom materials and supplies.
• Improve working conditions,
compensation, and formalized career
ladders to reduce attrition and retain
the best and brightest in GCS.
• Increase tech-based organizational
and management efficiency
structures that can support high
student achievement and systemwide
processes and protocols
to create equity, efficiency and
consistency across the schools.
• Create district-wide systems and
standard operating procedures for
major activities, especially, school
choice admission and funding
procedures, human resources,
instructional frameworks and
certain business and transportation
endeavors
“Existing
achievement gaps
between groups of
students and gaps
among schools
must be addressed
with urgency.”
7

CONCLUSIONS
A large group of diverse individuals volunteered their
time and worked diligently over a six-month period
to develop actionable recommendations to support
Dr. Sharon Contreras in her quest to provide each
student in the Guilford County Schools with optimal
learning opportunities. As she endeavors to build
upon the strengths already existing in the system,
Dr. Contreras can utilize these recommendations
provided to her as tools for success.
It is clear that Guilford County Schools enjoys many strengths, chiefly,
a dedicated, professional workforce, a desire to educate its students well,
established school choice options and efforts to improve the buildings in order
to create environments conducive to optimal teaching and learning conditions.
Our hope is that the work of the Transition Team will be disseminated widely,
the recommendations adopted on a short and long-term basis and that its
deliberations will be useful to Dr. Contreras as she seeks to lead the school
system to “world class” status.
Harold L. Martin, Ph.D., Chancellor
NC A&T State University
Transition Team Co-Chair
James Merrill, Ed.D., Superintendent
Wake County Public School System
Transition Team Co-Chair
Elizabeth “Betty” Molina Morgan, Ph.D.
President, The Morgan Group
Transition Team Facilitator
8
8

GUILFORD COUNTY SCHOOLS
TRANSITION TEAM LEADERS
Dr. Harold L. Martin Sr., Chancellor, North
Carolina Agricultural and Technical State
University Transition Team Co-Chair
Dr. Harold Lee Martin Sr. is the 12th
chancellor of North Carolina Agricultural
and Technical State University (A&T),
bringing more than 30 years of
transformative leadership experience in
higher education. Before his election as chancellor of A&T, Dr.
Martin was senior vice president for academic affairs for the
UNC system, 11th chief administrator/seventh chancellor of
Winston-Salem State University, and department chair, dean and
vice chancellor for academic affairs at A&T. Dr. Martin serves on
various boards including the Southern Association of Colleges
and Schools Review Advisory Board, Research Triangle Institute,
Piedmont Triad Regional Development Council, NCAA HBCUs
Committee on Academic Performance and Limited-Resource
Institutions Advisory Group, and the Board for International Food
and Agricultural Development (presidential appointment). In
2015, he was named to the EBONY Power 100 list and the Triad’s
Most Influential People by the Triad Business Journal, and he
was one of the Triad Business Journal’s 2016 Most Admired
CEOs. A native of Winston-Salem, Dr. Martin received his B.S.
and M.S. degrees in electrical engineering from A&T and a Ph.D.
in electrical engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and
State University.
Dr. James G. Merrill, Superintendent,
Wake County Public School System
Transition Team Co-Chair
Dr. James G. Merrill is the ninth
superintendent of the Wake County Public
School System. Following his arrival, he
helped guide a new strategic plan for the
nation’s 16th-largest district built upon
support from thousands of educators, parents, business leaders
and community groups. While the plan takes root in the district
of almost 160,000 students, Dr. Merrill has worked closely
with county commissioners to significantly improve funding
for teachers and children. Prior to his current position, Dr.
Merrill served seven years as superintendent of the Virginia
Beach City Public Schools, six years as superintendent of the
Alamance-Burlington School System and 16 years in the Wake
County Public School System. He began his career in 1973 as
an English teacher. 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. The University of North Carolina at Greensboro School of
Education awarded him the Outstanding Achievement Award. The
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Education
honored him with its Distinguished Leadership Award. He is also
a 2016 candidate representing the central region of the state for
the upcoming North Carolina Superintendent of the Year award.
Dr. Elizabeth “Betty” Molina Morgan,
President, The Morgan Education Group
Transition Team Facilitator
Dr. Elizabeth “Betty” Molina Morgan,
president of The Morgan Education Group,
is a consultant to public sector, non-profit
and private entities. She has been the Chief
Education Advisor to America’s Promise
Alliance, an organization founded by General Colin and Mrs.
Alma Powell, and has consulted and delivered presentations
and keynote addresses to a wide range of organizations, such
as: agencies of the Federal Government; ExxonMobil; the Napa
Valley Educators’ Exchange; the College Board; the South
Carolina Association of School Administrators; the Metro
Nashville Public Schools, and at numerous, national conferences
and convenings. Dr. Morgan served for nearly a decade as
superintendent of the Washington County (MD) Public Schools, a
system of wide diversity with a high student poverty population.
During her tenure as superintendent, Dr. Morgan focused on
developing innovative and challenging educational opportunities
in order to serve the needs of a wide range of students who
attend public schools. She is a passionate advocate for high
academic standards and for transforming schools to reach
world-class levels in order to prepare students well for college
and careers. She believes that it is important for education
leaders to take risks, lead courageously, and establish strategic
partnerships in order to improve schools for the benefit of
all students. Dr. Morgan has been the recipient of numerous
fellowships, honors and awards for excellence in leadership,
including being the first superintendent from Maryland to be
named National Superintendent of the Year in 2010 by The
American Association of School Administrators.
9

Dr. Irvin Scott, Senior Lecturer on
Education, Harvard Graduate School of
Education Student Achievement Committee
Co-Chair
Dr. Irvin Scott joined the faculty of Harvard
Graduate School of Education during the
summer of 2016. At Harvard, Dr. Scott’s
concentration is Educational Leadership.
Dr. Scott is excited about his work teaching at HGSE in the
School Leadership Program and Doctor of Education Leadership
Program. “Both programs are producing amazing leaders who are
doing great things on behalf of children throughout the country,”
he says. Before coming to Harvard, Dr. Scott served for five years
as the deputy director for K–12 Education at the Bill and Melinda
Gates Foundation, where he led the investment of $300 million in
initiatives focused on transforming how teachers are recruited,
developed, and rewarded. This work was built on existing
efforts that were occurring in the Gates Foundation’s Intensive
Partnership. At the Foundation, Dr. Scott also led a team to initiate
the Elevating and Celebrating Effective Teaching and Teachers
experience, which has become a teacher-driven movement and
can be found in a majority of states across the country. Look up
#ECET2 to learn more. This teacher-led effort involves bringing
thousands of teachers together to collaborate with their peers,
engage in teacher leadership, and celebrate the profession. In an
effort to address educational inequities in the U.S., Dr. Scott also
led an effort at the Foundation to build strong partnerships and
deeper engagement between faith-based organizations that serve
underrepresented students, families, and communities. Over his
nearly 30 years in education, Dr. Scott has been Chief Academic
Officer and Assistant Superintendent of High Schools for Boston
Public Schools; a high school principal at McCaskey East High
School in Lancaster, PA; and a high school English teacher at
McCaskey High School – the job he’s loved the most.
appointed by the secretary of education, Richard Riley, to the
National Research Advisory Council and in 2000, Dr. Bottoms was
appointed to the National Commission on the Senior Year. The
award Dr. Bottoms prizes the most is the Alumni of Distinction
Award from the University of Georgia’s Graduate School that he
received in 2013. Dr. Bottoms was chosen among the first 16
recipients to receive this award in the history of the University’s
Graduate School.
Carlvena Foster, Vice President YMCA
of High Point, Carl Chavis Branch
School Choice, Equity and Excellence
Committee Co-Chair
Carlvena Foster is a native High Pointer
graduating as a member of the last
graduating class from Historic William Penn
High School in 1968, marking the end of the
segregation of schools in High Point. She holds a BS degree in
Business Management from Shaw University; Master’s degree in
Public Administration from High Point University; NC Child Care
Director certification and has completed all coursework toward
a degree in Educational Leadership from University of Phoenix.
Ms. Foster is the District Vice President of Operations for the
Carl Chavis YMCA and she serves on many boards and
committees including Communities in Schools; High Point
Principal’s Fund; 1st Generation College Student Scholarship
Committee at High Point University; Furnitureland Rotary; High
Point Convention and Visitors Bureau Board; African American
Initiative of the United Way of Greater High Point and member
of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She was elected to serve on
the Guilford County Board of Education in 2008, and currently
represents the citizens of Guilford County as a Guilford County
Commissioner, elected in 2014.
Dr. Gene Bottoms, Senior Vice President,
Southern Regional Education Board (SREB)
Student Achievement Committee Co-Chair
Dr. Gene Bottoms is the senior vice
president of the Southern Regional
Education Board, which has the largest
reform effort in America to improve high
schools, middle grades schools and sharetime
career and technical centers for career-bound students. In
his role, Dr. Bottoms oversees high school, middle grades and
technology center reform and the preparation of school leaders
to become leaders of curriculum and instruction. Prior to joining
the Southern Regional Education Board, Dr. Bottoms served
as executive director of the American Vocational Association,
where he emphasized academics as an integral part of vocational
education at the secondary and postsecondary levels. He
served as director of educational improvement for the Georgia
Department of Education for 13 years, overseeing improvement
efforts in both vocational and academic education. In September
1995, Dr. Bottoms received the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize
in Education. This award is presented annually to individuals
who have made significant contributions to the advancement
of knowledge through education. In 1994 Dr. Bottoms was
Maree Sneed, Partner, Hogan Lovells
School Choice, Equity and Excellence
Committee Co-Chair
Maree Sneed is recognized in the education
industry as a lawyer who helps school
districts, independent schools, educational
institutions, and educational companies
solve their most complex problems. For
three decades, clients have sought her advice as a result of her
experience working in the education system, her legal acumen,
her public policy work, and her ability to make connections
between the education and legal arenas. Ms. Sneed has advised
clients in the education sector on a broad range of issues,
including social media, bullying and cyberbullying, harassment,
sex and race discrimination, English language learners, and
magnet schools. She also advises on privacy, including the Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act; special education/IDEA;
equitable access and opportunities; integration and desegregation;
school facilities; contracts; Title IX, Title VI, and 504 compliance;
and charter schools. Ms. Sneed has provided regulatory advice
to clients and litigated cases for clients in state courts as well as
federal, district, and appellate courts. Ms. Sneed and her team
worked on two important Supreme Court cases involving school
10

districts — Schafer v. Weast and PICs v. Seattle School District No.
1. Ms. Sneed has also represented school districts in Office for Civil
Rights (OCR) and Department of Justice (DOJ) investigations and
negotiated voluntary resolution agreements.
Monica Santana Rosen, CEO, Alma Advisory
Group Talent Development Committee
Co-Chair
Monica Santana Rosen has spent the last
two decades working to build strong diverse
workplaces and to enable leaders to do
great work. Ms. Rosen is best-known for her
work with urban school systems working to
solve their most pressing recruitment, hiring, development and
retention issues. As the Employee Services Officer in Chicago
Public Schools (CPS), Ms. Rosen led the redesign of HR for the
48,000 employee district, and then managed HR operations (called
Employee Services). During her tenure, average transaction
turn-around time improved from eight weeks down to three days,
call answer rates from 45 percent to 93 percent, and first call
resolution from 45 percent to 75 percent. Ms. Rosen later moved
into a Talent Management Officer role for CPS, where she focused
specifically on leadership pipelines, spearheading the redesign
of a principal screening process, launching local and national
principal recruitment, and supporting the promotion, support
and succession planning for principals. She also established the
Leadership Development and Support unit, where she oversaw the
district’s leadership development strategy, including the design
of the district’s Principal Induction program and support for the
district’s 26 principal supervisors. After leaving CPS in 2011, Ms.
Rosen established and led the human capital consulting practice
for Cross & Joftus (C&J). At C&J, Ms. Rosen supported districts,
states and charter management organizations with HR assessment
and redesign, teacher recruitment and hiring, and principal
recruitment, hiring, support and development. In the fall of 2016,
Ms. Rosen ventured out on her own and founded Alma Advisory
Group, LLC with the mission of fostering the people, practices, and
culture that enable staff to do their best, teams to do great work,
and organizations to accomplish outstanding results.
Ann Blakeney Clark, Superintendent,
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Talent Development Committee Co-Chair
Ann Blakeney Clark brings a quarter-century
of experience in Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Schools to her role as superintendent. Ms.
Clark’s extensive education background
includes serving as principal at elementary,
middle and high schools. She most recently served as the
district’s deputy superintendent. Ms. Clark graduated from
Davidson College with a B.A. in English and earned a master’s
degree in special education from the University of Virginia. Her
achievements in education and the community have been widely
recognized. She has been named a Broad Superintendent Fellow,
Charlotte Women of the Year, the Thomas Jefferson Distinguished
Alumnae Award from University of Virginia, National Principal of
the Year (1994) and William Friday Fellow and Council for Great
City Schools Outstanding Urban Educator Award winner.
Dr. Ronald L. Epps, Retired Superintendent,
Richland One School District Organizational
Effectiveness for Optimal Learning
Committee Co-Chair
Dr. Ronald L. Epps is a native of Kansas
City, Kansas, having attended the public
schools of Kansas City. He received his
Bachelor and Master’s degrees from Emporia
State University and received his Ph.D. in Administration and
Foundations from Kansas State University. Dr. Epps served as
superintendent of schools for Richland County School District One
in Columbia, South Carolina for six years. Prior to coming to South
Carolina’s capital city schools, he served as an educational leader
in Kansas and Illinois. His current consulting work with Interactive
Learning Systems specializes in leadership, organizational
development, and systems transformation. Some of his clients
include the following: New Haven Public Schools of New Haven,
Ct., Baltimore City Schools, Cumberland County Public Schools,
Paterson Public Schools of Paterson, N.J., St. Louis Public
Schools, Kansas City Public Schools, Huntsville Public Schools,
Syracuse Public Schools, Minneapolis Public Schools and Michigan
Education Achievement Authority to name a few.
Dr. Julian Trevino, Department of
Educational Leadership and Policy
Studies, University of Texas at San Antonio
Organizational Effectiveness for Optimal
Learning Committee Co-Chair
Dr. Julian Trevino is a senior lecturer and
director of the Center for Educational
Leadership, Policy and Professional
Development at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA).
His interest is in urban education, and effective school board
governance. Dr. Trevino has taught courses in the politics of
education, and foundations of educational leadership at the
graduate and post-graduate levels. He holds a doctorate in
Educational Administration from Texas A&M University at College
Station. Dr. Trevino has consulted with school boards across the
United States on effective school board governance. Dr. Trevino
has been involved in the training of five Broad Prize winners. Prior
to his university teaching, he was a public school teacher at all
levels. He also served as a middle school principal and high school
principal prior to holding several central office positions. Dr. Trevino
served on the Board of Trustees for the San Antonio Independent
School District for 12 years, six of those as school board president.
Under his leadership as president, the board was recognized twice
nationally for “exemplary board governance,” and was also a finalist
for Texas Honor Board. With support from the San Antonio Hispanic
Chamber of Commerce, Trevino founded the Bexar County School
Board Coalition which strives to promote excellence in education for
all students by improving the governance and collaboration among
the county-wide school districts. The coalition was a first in the
country’s seventh largest city.
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TRANSITION TEAM
MEMBERSHIP
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Superintendent: Dr. Sharon L. Contreras,
Guilford County Schools
Facilitator: Dr. Elizabeth “Betty” Molina Morgan,
The Morgan Education Group
TEAM CO-CHAIRS AND MEMBERS
Co-Chairs: Dr. Harold L. Martin, Chancellor, NC A&T State
University; Dr. James Merrill, Superintendent, Wake County
Public School System
Staff Liaison: Dr. Nora Carr, Chief of Staff
STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
Co-Chairs: Dr. Irvin Scott, Professor, Harvard University School
of Education; Gene Bottoms, Senior Vice President, Southern
Regional Education Board (SREB)
Staff Liaison: Nakia Hardy, Chief Academic Officer
Members:
• Robison “Robbi” Bean, Social Studies Teacher,
High Point Central High School
• Amy Blalock, GCS Parent
• Davia Brown Franklyn, Senior Director of Partnerships,
Bank Street of School of Education,
• Patrice Faison, Principal, Page High School
• Fanisha Fuller, Teacher, Oak Hill
• Dr. Anthony Graham, Dean, School of Education,
NC A&T State University
• Jessica Grant, Math Teacher, Northeast Middle School
• Mary Herbenick, Executive Director, Ready for School,
Ready for Life
• Addy Jeffrey, GCS Parent
• Renee Jenkins, GCS Parent
• Michelle King, Associate Director of Communities,
Learning Forward
• Marshall Matson, Principal, Mendenhall Middle
• Denise Murphy, Teacher, Sumner Elementary
• Mayra Ortiz, Director of Bilingual Education, Rochester
City School District
• Dulce Ortiz, GCS Parent and Staff Member, Faith House
International
• Dr. Randy Penfield, Dean, School of Education,
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
• Rev. Bryan Pierce, Senior Pastor, Mount Zion Baptist Church
• Dr. Maria Pitre-Martin, Chief Academic and Digital Learning
Officer, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
• Dr. Meg Sheehan, Western Regional Superintendent, GCS
• Jason Stricker, Founder and CEO, Insight Education Group
SCHOOL CHOICE, EQUITY & EXCELLENCE
Co-Chairs: Maree Sneed, Partner, Hogan Lovell; Carlvena Foster,
Vice President, YMCA of High Point, Carl Chavis Branch and
Commissioner, Guilford County Board of Commissioners
Staff Liaison: Dr. Terrence O. Young, Chief Information Officer
Members:
• Rev. Laverne Carter, Board Member and Education
Representative, NAACP – Greensboro
• Brent Christenson, Chief Executive Officer, Greensboro
Chamber of Commerce
• Kristen Clarke, President and Executive Director,
The National Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
• Dr. Phyllis Dawkins, Interim President, Bennett College
• Kimberly Gatling, GCS Parent
• Christine Griffith-Legette, GCS Parent
• Kathy Hinshaw, President, Latino Community Coalition
• Dr. Christina Kishimoto, Superintendent of Schools,
Gilbert Public Schools, Arizona
• Flora Luk, Teacher, Ragsdale High
• Dr. Phyllis Martin, Southeastern Regional Superintendent,
GCS
• Ashley McClain, Teacher, Alamance Elementary School
• Scott McCully, Executive Director, Student Placement,
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
• Winston McGregor, Executive Director, Guilford Education
Alliance
• Rev. Don Miller, Pastor, Westover Church
• Dr. Shelley Nixon-Green, Penn-Griffin School of the Visual
and Performing Arts
• Brian Norris, Senior Director of Development and Investor
Relations, High Point Chamber of Commerce
• Dr. Randy Parker, President, Guilford Technical Community
College
• Edward Shafer, Consultant, CTE Technical Assistance
• Kenneth Shultz, Chief of Police, City of High Point
• Angela Talton, GCS Parent and Chief Diversity Officer, Nielsen
• Monica Walker, Diversity Officer, GCS
• Edward Wohlgemuth, Principal, Florence Elementary
• Doyle Craven, Director of Student Assignment, GCS
• Donna Bell, Director of Planning, GCS
• Dibrelle Tourret, Executive Director of Advanced Learners, GCS

TRANSITION TEAM
MEMBERSHIP
TALENT DEVELOPMENT
Co-Chairs: Monica Santana Rosen, Alma Advisory Group; Ann
Clark, Superintendent, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Staff Liaison: Dr. Shirley Morrison, Chief Human Resources
Officer
Members:
• Jaime Aquino, Chief Program Officer, New Leaders
• Elizabeth “Betsy” Arons, Chief Executive Officer,
Urban School Human Capital Academy
• Charles Blanchard, Principal, Grimsley High School
• Dr. Larry Czarda, President, Greensboro College
• Karen Dyer, Director of Education and Non-Profit Sector,
Center for Creative Leadership
• Chris Gillespie, GCS Parent and Director of Programs,
West End Ministries
• Jeremy Grant-Skinner, Senior Managing Director,
Leadership, Teach For America
• Krista Hannah, Teacher, Ferndale Middle School
• Bryan C. Hassel, Co-Director, Public Impact
• Yacine Kout, North Carolina Society of Latino Professionals
• Paul Lessard, President and CEO, High Point
Community Foundation
• Rev. Diane Moffett, Pastor, Saint James Presbyterian
• Keith G. Pemberton, Say Yes to Education Guilford
• Mildred Poole, Community Volunteer
• Dr. Randy Shaver, Northern Regional Superintendent, GCS
• Penny Simmons, GCS Parent and Senior Manager,
Human Resources, Supply Chain and Shared Services,
Ralph Lauren Corporation
• Dr. Mariann Tillery, Dean, School of Education,
High Point University
• Angela Waiters-Jackson, President, Guilford County
Association of Educators
ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS FOR
OPTIMAL LEARNING
Co-Chairs: Dr. Ronald L. Epps, Retired Superintendent and
former National Superintendent of the Year, Richland One School
District in South Carolina; Julian Trevino, Senior Lecturer,
Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies,
College of Education and Human Development, University of
Texas at San Antonio
Staff Liaison: Angie Henry, Chief Financial Officer, GCS
Members:
• Rebecca M. Buffington, Board of Education, District 7
• Charles “Chuck” Cornelio, former President (retired),
Retirement Plan Services, Lincoln Financial Group and
Board Chairman, Guilford Education Alliance
• Derek Ellington, Vice President, Bank of America
• Shirley Frye, Bryan Foundation
• Michelle Gethers-Clark, President and CEO, United Way
of Greater Greensboro
• Kevin Gray, Executive Director, Weaver Foundation
• Clarence Grier, Deputy County Manager, Guilford County
• Angel Guerrero, GCS Parent and Business Owner, Speaker
• Ed Kitchen, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer,
Joseph M. Bryan Foundation
• J. Lee Lloyd, Attorney and Chairman, Greensboro Chamber
of Commerce
• Beverley Malcolm, Director of Associate Communications,
VF Corporation
• Johncarlos Miller, Weaver Academy of Visual and Performing
Arts and Career and Technical Education
• Erin O’Hara, Executive Director, Tennessee Education
Research Alliance, Vanderbilt University
• Mike Rounds, Vice Provost for Human Resource Management,
University of Kansas
• Walker Sanders, President, Community Foundation of
Greater Greensboro
• Kimberly Scott, Principal, Montlieu Academy of Technology
• Nicole Strayhorn-Piggott, GCS Parent and Director of
Secondary Education, Lexington City Schools
• Nancy Van Duin, ESOL Teacher, Falkener Elementary School
• Mary Vigue, Executive Director, Say Yes to Education Guilford
• Dr. Tony Watlington, Central Regional Superintendent, GCS
• Dr. Quincy Williams, Principal, Ferndale Middle School
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BOARD OF EDUCATION
District 1
T. Dianne Bellamy Small
bellamysmall@gcsnc.com
(336) 580-4655
District 2
Anita Sharpe
sharpeaw@hotmail.com
(336)-294-4238
District 3
Pat Tillman
tillmap@gcsnc.com
(336-580-9270
District 4
Linda Welborn
welborl@gcsnc.com
(336) 674-8504
District 5
Darlene Garrett
Vice-Chair
dygarr@aol.com
(336) 643-6070
District 6
Wes Cashwell
cashwew@gcsnc.com
(336)690-9517
District 7
Byron Gladden
gladdeb@gcsnc.com
(336) 690-9610
District 8
Deena A. Hayes
hayesd@gcsnc.com
(336) 690-9516
At-Large
Alan W. Duncan
Chair
aduncan@mullinsduncan.com
(336) 645-3320
712 NORTH EUGENE STREET x GREENSBORO, NC 27401 x 336.370.3200 x www.gcsnc.com
In compliance with federal laws, Guilford County Schools administers all educational programs,
employment activities and admissions without discrimination because of race, religion, national or
ethnic origin, color, age, military service, disability or gender, except where exemption is appropriate
and allowed by law. Refer to the Board of Education’s Discrimination Free Environment Policy AC
for a complete statement. Inquiries or complaints should be directed to the Guilford County Schools
Compliance Officer, 120 Franklin Boulevard, Greensboro, NC 27401; 336.370.2323.
All Guilford County Schools facilities, both educational and athletic, are tobacco-free learning environments.
©2017 Guilford County Schools, 712 North Eugene Street, Greensboro, NC 27401
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