New principals appointed at 9 Hamilton County schools

School literacy book reading tile
School literacy book reading tile

Nine new principals were announced Monday for the Hamilton County Schools system.

Earlier this month, five new principals were named, after the district announced in April that it would be seeking at least 11 new school leaders.

Current Snow Hill Elementary principal Lea Ann Burk will take over at Alpine Crest. She has been a principal for 15 years, also serving at at Falling Water Elementary, Brown Academy, and Lakeside Academy. Burk previously served as assistant principal at Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts and was a founding teacher at Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences, where she taught for 15 years. Burk has also taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where she earned both her bachelor's and master's degrees.

East Ridge Elementary's principal position, which was vacated by Gail Huffstutler's move to Wolftever Elementary, will be filled by Juan Moreno, who will be promoted from his current assistant principal position. Moreno has been an assistant principal at East Ridge since 2016. He is a former Public Education Fund Leadership Fellow and member of the PEF Principal Leadership Academy and is a member of the Chattanooga 2.0 steering committee.

Huffstutler, who has led East Ridge since 2013, was also a member of the PEF Principal Leadership Academy, PEF Leadership Fellow and the State AP Academy. She has taught at Brown International Academy, where she also served as a literary coach, Westview and Alpine Crest. Huffstutler earned a bachelor's degree from Lee University and a master's from Trevecca Nazarene University.

Ursula Greene will be the new principal at Hixson Elementary School, promoted from the assistant principal position she has held since 2013. Greene has also worked as an assistant principal at Hardy Elementary and Orchard Knob Middle School, and served 18 years in the district. Greene is also a PEF Leadership Fellow graduate and a Principal Leadership Academy graduate. She holds a bachelor's and a master's degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and a specialist degree from Tennessee Technological University.

Middle Valley Elementary principal Jill Evans will move to Rivermont Elementary. Evans worked as both a math and a literacy coach at Middle Valley, but started her career in Knoxville at Green Math and Science Magnet and Ball Camp Primary in Knoxville. Evans taught at Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts and Battle Academy and is also a PEF Leadership Fellow and Principal Leadership Academy graduate. Evans has also served as an assessment team committee member for Read 20. She was also a co-teacher of University of Tennessee at Chattanooga literacy instruction while at Battle Academy. Evans holds a bachelor's degree, urban specialist certification, and a master's degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Mary Catherine Gatlin will begin her 20th year in education as the new principal at Loftis Middle School in the fall. She has served as a classroom teacher, data coordinator, curriculum developer, program director, and an instructional coach in West Tennessee. She moved to Chattanooga in 2013 to work at Red Bank High School as a curriculum interventionist and later became an assistant principal. Gatlin now serves as an assistant principal at Signal Mountain Middle/High School, where she has been since 2015. She holds a master's degree in teaching and learning, a master's degree in educational leadership and an educational leadership doctoral degree from Union University.

Debbie Caudle will transition from assistant principal to principal at Westview Elementary School, where she has worked since 2016. Before moving into administration, she was a third- and fourth-grade teacher at Wallace A. Smith Elementary. Caudle has taught in Polk County Schools in Lakeland, Florida, and Dallas Independent School District in Dallas. Caudle holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Tennessee and a master's from Nova Southeastern University.

Dawn Lim will take over at Ooltewah Middle School. Lim has been an assistant principal at Tyner Academy since 2014. She has also served as an assistant principal at Loftis Middle School. Lim began teaching in 1998 at Tyner and has served as the volunteer volleyball assistant coach, an assistant track coach and a trainer of diversity workshops. She moved to Red Bank High School a year later to teach English. She was a PEF Leadership Fellow and a graduate of the Hamilton County Schools system herself. Lim holds a bachelor's degree from Emory and Henry College and a master's from Trevecca Nazarene University.

The principal position at Tyner Academy will be taken over by Gerald Harris. He was formerly dean of students at Tyner and was the head basketball coach from 2007-2015. Harris was twice named Coach of the Year while at Tyner. He has also coached at the collegiate level at Trevecca Nazarene University, Middle Tennessee State University, and the University of Colorado. Harris has been an assistant principal at Dalewood Middle since 2015. Harris holds a bachelor's degree from Middle Tennessee State and a master's from Trevecca Nazarene University.

Contact staff writer Meghan Mangrum at mmangrum@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592. Follow her on Twitter @memangrum.

Upcoming Events