Superintendent Johnson honors Boston schools, principals at annual Leadership Conference

BOSTON – More than 140 principals and headmasters gathered this summer for the 2010 Boston Public Schools Leadership Conference, along with teacher leaders, district administrators and other educators. The two-day conference at Simmons College culminated with the presentation of awards to schools and principals.

Honorees included:

•    Principal of the Year: Valeria Lowe Barehme, Timilty Middle School, Roxbury;
•    Rookie of the Year (first-year principals): Amy Sprott, Hennigan Elementary School, Jamaica Plain;
•    Family & Community Engagement Award: Leo Flanagan, Jr., James Otis Elementary School, East Boston;
•    Best Student Attendance, Elementary: Simon Ho, Josiah Quincy Elementary School, Chinatown;
•    Best Student Attendance, Middle: Traci Walker Griffith, John Eliot K-8 School, North End;
•    Best Student Attendance, High: Lynne Mooney Teta, Boston Latin High School, Fenway;
•    Best Teacher Attendance: Yvonne West, Middle School Academy, Dorchester
•    Most Improved School in Mathematics: Robert Martin, Hugh O’Donnell Elementary School, East Boston;
•    Most Improved School in English Language Arts: Robert Martin, Hugh O’Donnell Elementary School, East Boston.

District officials also honored retiring principals and headmasters for their years of service to the Boston Public Schools:

•    Kathleen Armstrong, Principal, Conley Elementary School, Roslindale, 39 years
•    Gloria Coulter, Snowden International School at Copley, 38 years
•    Sherry Brooks-Roberts (Teacher Leader), Patrick Lyndon K-8 School, West Roxbury, 36 years
•    Eunice da Silva Fernandes, West Zone Early Learning Center, 33 years
•    Edmund Donnelly, Headmaster Brook Farm Academy, West Roxbury, 35 years
•    Pamela Hilton, Parkway Academy of Technology and Health, West Roxbury, 38 years
•    Kate Johnson (Teacher Leader), Lyndon K-8 School, West Roxbury, 42 years
•    Eleanor Kearse-Perry, Principal, Hennigan Elementary School, Jamaica Plain, 34 years
•    Craig Lankhorst, Fifield Elementary School, Dorchester, 36 years
•    Victoria Megias-Batista, Academic Superintendent for Elementary Schools, 34 years
•    Mary Nash, Academic Superintendent for Elementary Schools, 35 years
•    Janet Palmer Owens, Chief Academic Officer, 41 years
•    Mildred Ruiz-Allen, Principal Blackstone Elementary School, South End, 29 years
•    Carlene Shavis, Tynan Elementary School, South Boston, 21 years

The conference featured keynote addresses from national education experts, workshops, greetings from members of the Boston School Committee, health and wellness activities, a student art gallery, and music and dance performances by BPS students and staff.