Vermont Principal of the Year Amy Minor has recently returned from Washington DC, where she joined top principals from all around the nation for an important three-day event.
CHS Principal Amy Minor in Washington DC in September
The award-winning principals from all across the country came together to discuss best practices and current education-related legislation and to meet with senators and congressmen and congresswomen on Capitol Hill.
CHS Prinicpal Minor and US Senator Leahy discuss education in Washington DC
(Senator Leahy wore a blue-and-green tie in honor of the Lakers for his meeting with Principal Minor.)
Bellows Falls Middle School Principal Heidi Lucas-Moccia, US Senator Leahy, and Principal Minor at the Capitol in Washington DC
While on Capitol Hill, Principal Minor advocated for funding to support electronic devices for all students in grades 6–12. She shared with legislators some of the current challenges that high school students face, and she shared some of the ways in which CHS is working to personalize learning and the high school experience for all high school students. She also discussed at length the funding challenges that all schools face and how challenging it is to offer innovative programming on a limited budget.
“It was an honor to engage leaders from around the country in such meaningful and important dialogue,” Principal Minor said. “I had the sense that our voices were truly heard; Arne Duncan, Senator Leahy and Senator Sanders, Congressman Welch … they truly listened. It was a phenomenal experience.”
Colchester High School has repeatedly ranked among the top 5 percent of high schools in the nation under Principal Minor’s leadership. Additionally, CHS won high praise from the Vermont Agency of Education for its impressive improvements in performance with Principal Minor at the reins. In fact, Lawrence O. Picus and Associates conducted an extensive case study of CHS for the Vermont State Legislature in order to ascertain how such improvements were accomplished … without high spending and without high teacher salaries. As a result of the comprehensive study, CHS is being regaled as a model for other high schools across the state.
Under Principal Minor’s tutelage, CHS won accreditation from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC)—the result of a long-term, multi-component, and comprehensive assessment, and the school has been invited to present at the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) Fall 2013 and Fall 2014 conferences to present the school’s work on personalizing the academic experience for students through its AT program and to present the school’s work in developing a positive culture, climate, and beliefs for its learning community.
(Principal Minor leads the charge in cultivating a warm and comfortable learning environment, making grand efforts to create and foster school and community spirit. Please click here to watch a video of a surprise faculty flash mob at a pep rally.)
To read the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) press release about Principal Minor’s recognition, please click here.
For those of you who may not have seen WCAX’s coverage of the surprise send-off the CHS students coordinated for Principal Minor, you can watch it here.
Congratulations and very well done, Principal Minor!
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