School Board Appoints Assistant Superintendent of Instruction Director of Secondary Education, Supervisors for ESOL/HILT & Minority Achievement Also Appointed

The Arlington School Board appointed Dr. Tara Nattrass as Arlington’s new Assistant Superintendent of Instruction. Nattrass is currently the Director of Elementary Education and Title I for Cabarrus County Public Schools in North Carolina. “Dr. Nattrass is passionate about teaching and learning and is dedicated to improving the educational outcomes for students,” said Superintendent Dr. Pat Murphy. He continued, “She also has had experience with organizing and leading professional development to engage staff in conversations and strategies that support literacy development and close the achievement gap.” Nattrass has 15 years of experience as an educator, serving the last four years in Cabarrus County Public Schools in North Carolina as the Director of Early Childhood, Elementary Education and Title I. Throughout her career, Nattrass has served in roles as an educator, including elementary classroom teaching as well as a school and district level administrator, including serving as a K-12 Literacy Facilitator for elementary, middle and high schools. She has lead her current division in developing standards-based report cards; creating a shared vision to develop a comprehensive pre-school blended program that included Head Start, North Carolina PreK, and Special Education. She also has experience implementing programs such as STEM, Language Immersion, and the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program. In addition, Nattrass spent a year as a third grade teacher at the ACS International School in Cobham, England. There, she promoted a high standard of performance and responsibility as global citizens with an international student population through the use of differentiation, implementing a comprehensive and varied curriculum. Nattrass earned a Doctor of Education in K-12 Educational Leadership and Policy from Vanderbilt University and holds a Master of Arts in educational leadership and a Bachelor of Arts in elementary education from St. Louis University. Director of Secondary Education

The School Board also approved the appointment of Tyrone Byrd as the Director of Secondary Education. Byrd, a graduate of APS, currently serves as the Principal of George Mason High School in Falls Church. “Tyrone is extremely familiar with Arlington Public Schools as a student, teacher and assistant principal. It is that experience and familiarity that makes him a good match to fill this role,” said Murphy. “Tyrone also has successfully managed the integration of innovative personalized learning by infusing technology into the curriculum to enhance teaching and learning, preparing students for their future and ensuring equity for all students.” Byrd has over 20 years of experience in education, most of which has been as a member of the APS instructional and administrative team, serving as a special education teacher and assistant principal at Washington-Lee High School. Byrd joined the Falls Church City Schools as a principal in 2009, and in 2015 he was awarded The Washington Post Distinguished Educational Leadership Award. Byrd has great relationships with students, staff and families. He has been called a “dynamic, hands-on leader who is dedicated to each of his students.” He is a collaborative decision-maker and works to include the voice of students, staff and his family community to create a nurturing and motivating environment for all students to receive support to participate successfully in a rigorous curriculum. Byrd recently completed coursework for an Ed.D. in Administration and Supervision from Virginia Tech. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Hampton University and a Master of Education from George Mason University. Supervisor of ESOL/HILT Samuel Klein has been appointed as the new Supervisor of the English as a Second Language/High Intensity Language Training (ESOL/HILT) office. He is currently an assistant principal in Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). Klein has 25 years of experience in education as a teacher and a school and central office administrator. Prior to his current position, Klein spent 10 years as an ESOL administrator in the FCPS central office. As an ESOL curriculum specialist and then coordinator for FCPS, he led and guided ESOL services for over 36,000 English Language Learners in grades PreK-12 and managed the Title III funds. Klein has a passion for promoting the importance of multi-culturalism and bilingual education while building the capacity of staff to support English Language Learners and their families. He has worked to promote and establish professional development for schools regarding curriculum, instruction, assessment, policy and shared responsibilities for English Language Learners. During his time as a researcher at the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition, he focused on teacher training programs at the national level. Klein is fluent in Spanish and has lived in Japan, South Korea, Spain and Costa Rica. He has a global perspective that can support the work of advancing student achievement of English Language Learners. Klein received a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish from Ohio State Univeristy and a teaching certificate from Seattle University. He also holds a Master of Education from Temple University. Minority Achievement Supervisor The Board approved the appointment of Dr. Theresa Adkins as the Supervisor of Minority Achievement. She has been the interim supervisor since October 2015. During her time as interim, Adkins has worked collaboratively with stakeholders to carry forward the work of the office. She joined APS in the fall of 2013 as the secondary specialist in the English Language Arts Office. Prior to her appointment in APS, she served as a tenured associate professor in the College of Education at Towson University. During that time, her research centered on culturally responsive pedagogy, teaching and learning among students from historically marginalized groups, and preparing teachers for learning environments characterized by diversity. She has published articles on these topics in Multicultural Perspectives, the Journal of Negro Education, and the English Journal and has presented at conferences for the American Educational Research Association (AERA), the National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME), and the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). As a result of her work in this field, she was awarded Towson University’s first President’s Award for Research Related to Diversity in 2011. Adkins holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Spelman College and a Master of Arts in English Education from the University of South Florida. She earned her Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Florida. Assistant Principals – Abingdon and Gunston In addition, the School Board appointed Blandine Liguidid as assistant principal at Abingdon Elementary School and Alvaro Marcelo Flores as assistant principal at Gunston Middle School. Liguidid is currently a teacher at Barrett Elementary School and Flores is the Director of Counseling Services at Gunston. All five appointments will be effective July 1, 2016.