Twenty Kentucky public school principals have begun a year-long executive-level leadership training course usually reserved for the nation’s top CEOs. An advisory board made up of business leaders and school superintendents chose these women for the Kentucky Chamber Foundation’s Leadership Institute for School Principals:

  • Angie Akers, Glasscock Elementary School (Marion County)
  • Michael Anderson, Calvert City Elementary School (Marshall County)
  • Willie Bartley, Elkhorn Middle School (Franklin County)
  • Joseph Bradley, Wingo Elementary (Graves County)
  • Elizabeth Brandenburg, North Park Elementary (Hardin County)
  • Doug Cotton, South Todd Elementary (Todd County)
  • Kevin Crider, Christian County Middle School
  • Leslee Davis, Ballard Memorial High School (Ballard County)
  • Brenton Dials, Meade Memorial Elementary School (Johnson County)
  • Jennifer Fish, Lansdowne Elementary (Fayette County)
  • Chris Gilkey, Christian County Alternative School
  • Michael Howton, Highlands Middle School (Fort Thomas Independent)
  • Paul Lamb, Reidland Elementary School (McCracken County)
  • Leigh Ann McLaughlin, Southern Elementary (Fayette County)
  • Jonathan Miller, Graves County Middle School
  • Meredith Ramage, Northern Elementary (Fayette County)
  • Michelle Ruckdeschel, Heritage Park High School (Daviess County)
  • Sarah Vivian, The Academy (Franklin County)
  • Shawn Thornbury, Charles Russell Elementary School (Ashland Independent)
  • Troy D. Wood, Eastside Middle School (Bullitt County)

A total of 48 principals participated in classes this summer at the Center for Creative Leadership in Greensboro, N.C., a top-ranked global provider of executive education. They also will attend follow-up sessions in the fall and early next year at the Kentucky Chamber’s headquarters in Frankfort.

 

Principals from public and private schools can apply for the institute, which is supported by generous donations from businesses. So far, more than $2.5 million has been spent on nearly 300 principals from 68 Kentucky counties since the program began in 2011.