Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Sidney A. Freund, has announced the
appointment of Ms. Shelley Somers as Principal for Central Middle School,
effective January 1, 2010. See attached for more information.
Kim Eves
Director of Communications
Greenwich Board of Education
290 Greenwich Avenue
Greenwich, CT 06830
http://www.greenwichschools.org/
Phone: 203-625-7415
e mail: kim_eves@greenwich.k12.ct.us
Fax: 203-869-8003
For immediate release: Friday, November 13, 2009 – Greenwich, CT)
Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Sidney A. Freund, has announced the appointment of Ms. Shelley Somers as Principal for Central Middle School, effective January 1, 2010. Ms. Somers is currently an Assistant Principal for Beaufort High School/Head of School of Arts, Communication and Technology in Beaufort, SC.
She has worked for Beaufort County Schools for the past ten years as teacher and administrator at the secondary level. Dr. Freund said, “Shelley Somers is an experienced and dedicated professional, with a track record of working collaboratively with teachers and maintaining a ‘students first’ focus.
She is an innovative leader, seeking out educationally sound strategies for addressing individual student needs, and is adept at data-driven decision making.
Her experience aligns with the direction that the District is taking in improving student outcomes and I am confident that she will be an effective leader for Central Middle School.”
Ms. Somers remarked, “I am honored and excited to have been selected as the Principal of Central Middle School. I am looking forward to working with students, staff, and parents and becoming a part of the Greenwich community.”
A site visit to Beaufort High School was conducted by a team from Greenwich, including Deputy Superintendent, Dr. Ellen Flanagan, CMS Assistant Principal, Dr. Jo Frame, CMS teacher, Ms. Jen Bresler, and CMS PTA President, Ms. Jill Marchak. “The opportunity to receive input from the Beaufort High School community and to view that feedback from the perspectives of an administrator, a teacher and a parent was invaluable in making this decision.
Ms. Somers certainly understands middle school-aged students and, based on her secondary experience, what will be expected of them at the high school level as well,” said Dr. Flanagan.
Dr. Frame noted, “After my conversations with Shelley and the positive comments I heard while visiting Beaufort, I am eager to work with her.”
Jen Bresler said, “I was glad to hear such positive feedback from teachers and staff at Beaufort High School. We learned that Ms. Somers is a fair, consistent, and progressive leader, and I look forward to working with her.”
“Shelley Somers is a smart, inspiring leader and a careful listener who cares deeply about her school community. Beneath her calm demeanor, she is passionate about educating students to their full potential and works openly and creatively to find solutions to problems. I believe that she will be responsive to parents and will earn the respect of Central's students, parents and staff alike,” shared Ms. Marchak.
In her role as English and Spanish teacher at the Humanities School of Beaufort in 1999-2000 she designed curriculum for both disciplines and created a Drama Department for the school, directing four productions. In 2000, she moved to Battery Creek High School in Beaufort as an English teacher and Department Chair. She taught English and Journalism for students in grades 9-12, supervised the
Department, developed and implemented a Tech Prep curriculum and a ‘small learning community’ for at-risk students.
She was recognized for her significant contributions to the school as the Battery Creek High School 2003 Teacher of the Year. In 2003, she was appointed Assistant Principal for Hilton Head High School, where she was responsible for the English and Social Studies Departments and acted as the ESOL Coordinator.
Recognizing the need for targeted interventions, Ms. Somers developed and
taught an after school credit recovery program, and designed and implemented an alternative program for at-risk students.
She taught English at Robert Smalls Middle School in 2005-06 before accepting the position of Head of School of Arts, Communications and Technology at Beaufort High School in 2006. In this role, Ms. Somers developed curriculum for school majors – Engineering, Media, Visual/Performing Arts, and
Communications.
She also acted as Community Liaison and has been skilled at developing partnerships with local businesses and the arts council, as well as a dual enrollment program with the local community college. Ms. Somers is experienced with data-driven decision making and identifying the needs of individual students. She is innovative in her approach to program development and instructional strategies to meet the needs of students, and she has been a consistent and valued advocate for her students.
Ms. Somers received her BA in Education from American University, Washington, D.C. in 1973; her Masters in Education from the University of Hartford, Hartford, CT in 1980; and her Administrative Certification from Central Connecticut State University in New Britain, CT in 1996.
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