Marge Ronco named 2002 Principal of the Year; Moore picked as Assistant Principal of the Year
November 7, 2002 - The principal of one of Wake's newest schools has earned the district's top administrative honor, Principal of the Year. Ballentine Elementary's Marge Ronco was named Principal of the Year in a ceremony at the Exploris Museum's IMAX theatre on Thursday night.
In addition to honoring Ronco, Wake County also named its top assistant principal, Robin Moore of Wake Forest-Rolesville High.
All Principal of the Year and Assistant Principal of the Year Finalists received a plaque and cash award. The Principal of the Year received $1,000. All Principal of the Year Finalists received $500. The Assistant Principal of the Year received $500 and all Assistant Principal of the Year Finalists received $250.
The Wake County Principal of the Year also competes for the honor of North Carolina Principal of the Year.
Ronco named Principal of the Year
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Principal of the school system's newest elementary school, Ronco opened Ballentine Elementary this year as a traditional-calendar school with a staff of 42 and 378 students in kindergarten through grade five. The school is in Fuquay-Varina, part of the fast growing western area of Wake County.
In their first year at the new school, Ballentine teachers praised Ronco for the smooth opening of the school.
"In opening a new school, Ronco was not afraid to get
her hands dirty; she is an extremely hard worker. This summer
she spent all her time preparing for our arrival. She left
no task undone," teachers said. "She worked on time-consuming
projects such as curriculum and furniture, while also attending
to small details such as pictures and plants in order to make
our school attractive and welcoming to students, staff, and
guests."
Ronco believes leadership shows up in the inspired action
of others. "I continually strive to build and nurture
a team that invests its heart and soul in children and is
committed to their academic success."
She served as principal of Lincoln Heights Elementary and
assistant principal of Apex Elementary, and as a teacher for
20 years. She is a founding member of the Citizens Against
Drugs task force and has served on North Carolina's Standards
Board for Public School Administrators for five years.
Before successfully opening the new school this year, Ronco
strengthened academics at Lincoln Heights Elementary. In 1993,
the school had the lowest writing scores in the county.
"We developed an approach which we called 'teaching
better than to the test.' The first step was for my instructional
resource teacher and I to work with teachers to ensure that
all were using the writing process in their classrooms. Next,
we focused specifically on the fourth-grade narrative writing
test," Ronco said. "We focused on its rubric and
the exact skills required of students for the test. From there,
teachers identified certain 'best practices' they were already
using and systematically began to evaluate their results.
Over time, we continually improved these core practices as
we moved from one percent at grade level in 1993 to 89 percent
at grade level in 2001."
Finalists for Principal of the Year included Terri Cobb of
Lockhart Elementary, Kevin Hill of Wildwood Forest Elementary,
Andre Smith of Wake Forest-Rolesville High, and Claude Willie
of West Lake Middle.
Moore named Assistant Principal of the Year
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Assistant Principal of the Year Robin Moore of Wake Forest-Rolesville
High said he's had the greatest impact on student achievement
at the school as administrator of the new Ninth-Grade Academy.
Moore worked with the Ninth-Grade Academy staff to plan the school year and visited with students at the first of the school year to tell them about the program's expectations and goals. Teachers and staff held bi-monthly meetings to address student needs and share ideas. Counselors met with parents to ensure their support for the program.
"During the second half of the school year, we targeted students who were at risk of failing and provided incentives for improved grades," Moore said. "As students' grades improved we mailed postcards to the students congratulating them on their improvement and urged them to show the postcard to their parents."
The Academy resulted in 95 percent of the school's ninth-graders earning promotion.
Moore is now looking to spur student interest in reading with the Plato Society. "Students will earn induction into a select club by reading a series of articles, essays and books identified by the ninth-grade faculty. The readings will be varied and will address issues such as the environment, world politics, and ethics."
He believes in the concept of transformational leadership where, "I attempt to create a compelling vision and generate enthusiasm that results in increased confidence, aspirations, and commitment among staff and students."
Teachers at Wake Forest-Rolesville High weren't sure what to expect when Moore arrived at the school four years ago after serving as principal of the school at the North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women. But they grew to appreciate him.
"Dr. Robin Moore's unique ability to inspire compassion, his cheerful optimism during even the most tedious tasks make him a popular and respected leader," the school's ninth-grade English teachers said. "His vision has brought Wake Forest-Rolesville High to the status of a distinguished school. The academy concept he pioneered has enabled us to better address the needs of individual students. He realizes that the true role of an administrator is to serve the needs of students, teachers, parents, and members of the community, which he does in admirable fashion."
Moore worked 18 years for the NC Department of Correction directing education programs at NC Correctional Institution for Women, Central Prison, and Polk Youth Institution. Moore earned a doctorate in educational policy from NC State in 1998.
Finalists for Assistant Principal of the Year include Susan Spivey of Cary Elementary, Althea Taylor of East Wake Middle, Pat Tolley of Brooks Elementary, and Bob Umstead of Swift Creek Elementary.
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