DEARBORN, MI – Susan Stanley, Principal at Salina Elementary, was named the Michigan Elementary and Middle School Principal Association (MEMSPA) Region One Principal of the Year. There are fourteen regions throughout the state with Region One including all of Wayne County. The honor was awarded to Stanley at the organization’s annual Leadership Awards Banquet held in early December.
Susan Stanley, Principal at Salina Elementary
Each Region presents the award to one of their members who has merited such recognition as acclaimed and approved by that Region’s Executive Board. The criteria for the award are a combination of teaching/administrative experience, participation in professional and civic organizations, and advancing the profession through service.
Like all administrators, Mrs. Stanley is a lifelong learner. She completed her Education Specialist at Wayne State University and is a recent graduate of MEMSPA’s Leadership Matters Cohort. She leads by example promising her new staff at Salina Elementary in Dearborn that she will work twice as hard as they do to make sure each student succeed.
Before joining Dearborn Public Schools this past fall at Salina Elementary, Sue worked for twenty –two years in Redford Union. She served as a 1st grade teacher, Reading Recovery teacher and as an elementary principal for 9 years. In those nine years, she kept morale alive and spirits going even with the challenges of having to close three elementary buildings and several programs.
With a passion for reading and a strong belief in building teacher leadership capacity, she is continuing to lead toward strong language and literacy skills for the youngest of learners. Believing in relationships, rigor and relevance for the entire school community, Susan is committed to finding ways for teachers to meet as a Professional Learning Community (PLC) group each week. Honoring the tremendous amount of time it takes for good teaching and learning to occur, she does whatever it takes to create pockets of time for teacher teams to meet.
“One of the greatest joys of leading a school where English is not the first language spoken in many of the student’s homes and many parents don’t speak English, is finding the common voice that is shared by all. This voice advocates that all children are to be provided with a world‐class education and that is what we strive to do every day at Salina,” commented Mrs. Stanley.