LeCinda Jennings

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 Courageous, passionate, and self-aware are words that LeCinda Jennings’ supervisor uses to describe her. In addition to her vibrant personality, her leadership in teaching and learning, along with a sharpened sense of responsibility all make her an excellent candidate for Principalship.

LeCinda has had the privilege to work as a school secretary, classroom teacher, department chair, and assistant principal. A proud military veteran, she has mastered the art of self-discipline to accomplish tasks effectively and efficiently. She has hired and continues to develop and retain excellent teachers through coaching and effective feedback for growth. In addition, LeCinda enjoys helping teachers to grow as teacher leaders by providing opportunities for professional and personal development.

She has a heart for mentoring and currently serves on her district’s mentoring steering committee. She is an advocate for all children and finds pleasure in serving students from various backgrounds. However, she has an exceptional gift in working with those students who experience difficulties by providing interventions and pathways for them to successfully navigate despite difficulties they may face.

Additionally, LeCinda’s educational gifts extend into the community via her very own nonprofit organization. She is the CEO and founder of Girls of Leadership and Distinction, (G.O.L.D.), a 501(c)(3) organization that inspires girls of today to flourish into strong, smart, and bold leaders of the future.  Since 2007 G.O.L.D. has successfully served over 250 girls and young ladies through exposure to service learning, goal-setting, academic initiatives, and college and career readiness skills. 

LeCinda believes that children are one of our most valuable resources and educational leaders are those who show commitment to teaching and learning. She seeks to help students and teachers to develop self-confidence in order to make accomplish the goals of the classroom, school, and district while building a strong school community.
 

 EDUCATION:
Doctoral Candidate-University of South Carolina Educational Policy and Leadership
Ed.S.- Administration and Leadership:  Converse College August 2015
M.Ed. Educational Leadership and Administration:  University of South Carolina December 2009
B.A. English/Minor:  Elementary Education University of South Carolina December 1999
PROFESSIONAL  PROFILE:

July 2014-present
Assistant Principal       North Springs Elementary School        
Richland Two School District       Columbia, SC

August 2012-present  
English Language Arts Teacher       English Department Chair Richland Two School District       Columbia, SC

April 2007-June 2012  
English Language Arts Department Chairperson
Sumter School District

June 2005-June 2007   Fourth Grade Teacher
Richland One Schools

August 2003-June 2004  Prekindergarten Teacher       
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools

January 2000-June 2003   Kindergarten Teacher
Guilford County Schools

CERTIFICATION:   Professional Certification by the South Carolina State Board of Education
      Class:  Masters Plus 30       
Areas:  Elementary Supervisor/Principal
Secondary Principal
Early Childhood,
Elementary,
Middle Level English language arts

Endorsement:    Gifted and Talented

Responsibilities and Duties:

Leadership Experience

• 2007-present  Founder and Director of GOLD nonprofit organization
• 2015-present Mentoring Administrator
• 2013-2014 Virtual School Coordinator
• 2013-2014 English Department Chair
• 2012-2013 Leadership Academy participant
• 2012-2013 Faculty Advisory Council to the Superintendent committee member
• 2013-2014 Richland School District Two Calendar Design Team member
• Participant of Richland School District Two 2012-2013 Parent Partnership Summit 
• 2009-2012 English language arts department chairperson to evaluate departmental needs and strengths
• Co-wrote curriculum for seventh grade language arts for district-wide use

 Administrative Responsibilities

• Manages a variety of school administrative functions (e.g. student disciplinary policy, school schedule, assigned personnel, etc.) for the purpose of enforcing school, district and state policy and maintaining safety and efficiency of school operations.
• Serve as Textbook Coordinator
• Serve as School Safety Representative
• Response to Intervention Supervisor
• Represents the school within community forums for the purpose of maintaining ongoing community support for educational goals and/or assisting with issues related to school environment.
• Supervises school personnel for the purpose of monitoring performance, providing for professional growth and achieving overall objectives of school's curriculum.
• Facilitates meetings, processes, etc. for the purpose of meeting curriculum guidelines and/or ensuring that state mandates are achieved.
• Evaluates assigned personnel for the purpose of ensuring that standards are achieved and performance is maximized.
• Chairs meetings (e.g. curriculum, safety, site advisory, special district committees, etc.) for the purpose of coordinating activities and ensuring that outcomes achieve school, district and/or state objectives.

Classroom Instruction

• Gifted and Talented instruction to seventh grade English language arts with varying ability levels
• Consistently met or exceeded state standards of assessment in middle level English language arts instruction 
• Consistently differentiate instruction to involve all learners in engaging learning environment through use of best practices and learning experiences
• Utilize technology to promote interactive learning and encourage interactive problem-solving
• Communicate with parents, students, teachers, and other professionals regarding student progress and performances
• Developed and organized  cross-curricular writing program integrating shared and independent writing in all content areas 
• Designed and implemented lesson plans incorporating cooperative learning, student interests, critical thinking, hands-on learning, and problem solving skills

Professional Development

• Provided support and training to teachers to effectively deliver new instructional techniques
• Presenter “Close Reading with Text Annotations” Dent Middle School
• Organize professional development for staff 
• 2014 SC Midlands Summit Presenter-SC Streamline is a Real Kahoot!

Student Achievement

• Consistently met and maintained school goal of 3.2 on report card index resulting in students meeting or exceeding the district English language arts average
• Devised action and intervention plans for student improvement and success as an active member of a Child Study Team
• Founder and sponsor of Girls of Leadership and Distinction (G.O.L.D) Club which fosters and encourages the social, educational, cultural, and emotional development of girls (served approximately 160 girls)

Parental Involvement

• Meet with parents and students to set instructional goals
• Developed parental support workshops to actively engage parents as stakeholders in the learning organization
• Initiate and sustain school contact with parents concerning positive behavior outcomes and academic progress
• Maintain accurate and up to date parent contact logs to improve parent involvement for home-school partnership and communication

 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT:
School :  
2013  SC Council for Social Studies-Anne Frank: A History for Today
2012  Project based Learning  
2012  Text Complexity in ELA for Common Core State Standards
2012  Working on the Work Conference
2011  Standards of Conduct for SC Educators -presenter  
2011  Differentiated Instruction-presenter  
2011  School Renewal Plan-presenter  
2011  MAP Data Dissemination and Goal Setting
2010-11  Write to Success Workshop-Presenter  

District:  
2013-present Administrator Development Series 2013  
2013 SC Midlands Summit  
2013  ELA:  Getting to the Core Unpacking the Common Core State Standards  
2013  Smarter Balanced Performance Assessments for Common Core State Standards
2012   National Pathway for Common Core State Standards Implementation
2011   Children in Poverty Workshop  
2011  Stewards of Light Sexual Abuse Workshop
2011  Divergent Learning course
2011  Sumter School District Curriculum Consolidation Team  
2010  Hewlett Packard Technology in Education grant
State:
2014  Nonviolent Crisis Intervention Training
2013  CERRA Certified Mentor        
2012  Families First Family Group Coordinator, State of South Carolina
2011  Meeting the Needs of Boy Writers Workshop
2007    Teacher Quality and Assessment Research Grant
2009  Benchmark Results Training  
2009  Film representative for successful assessment strategies-participant
AFFILIATIONS:
Golden Key International Honor Society South Carolina Association of School Administrators
MyCarolina Black Alumni Council Board member

 ACHIEVEMENTS  
2007-present  Founder and Director of Girls of Leadership and Distinction, Incorporated
2015-2016           Participant SC Department of Education-Assistant Principal Program for Leadership Excellence  
2014-2015  Participant SC Department of Education -Foundations for School Leadership
2012-2013  Participant in the 2012-2013 Richland Two School District Leadership Academy
2012 Donors Choose Grant Recipient for Reading Service Learning Project
2011, 2012 Nominee for Teacher of the Year Honors
2011 Crystal Apple Award Winner
2011 Presenter at Fall Professional Development Workshop for Sumter School District                            Topic:  “Seventh Grade Curriculum”
2007, 2008, 2010 Distinguished Teacher of Reading, Hillcrest Middle School
2010 Distinguished Teacher of Reading, Sumter County District Two
2010 Sumter Area Reading Council Distinguished Teacher of Reading
2009 Teacher of the Year, Hillcrest Middle School
2008 Golden Key International Honor Society Inductee
2005 Honorable Discharge, United States Army Reserve            

References available upon request