When school resumes in August, Northwest R-1 School District’s Brennan Woods Elementary School in High Ridge will have a new principal.
Jeannie Davis, an assistant principal at the Maple Grove Elementary School in Dittmer, has been promoted to take over the job.
Davis, 47, of Cedar Hill will replace Mary Smith, who was promoted to director of student services, taking over the job Nicole Myers is leaving on June 30 for a new one as assistant director of early childhood special education for the Wentzville School District.
Davis is paid a $77,481.25 annual salary as assistant principal at Maple Grove Elementary and will make $96,703 in her new position next school year, said Chuck McPherson, coordinator of communications and community relations.
Smith earns $94,031.60 a year as the Brennan Woods principal and will make a $115,403.20 annual salary as director of student services.
Myers makes $104,432.33 at Northwest R-1 and will earn $104,000 next school year at Wentzville, which is closer to her home.
Davis, who has been the assistant principal at Maple Grove for one year, started her educational career at Brennan Woods 18 years ago as a fourth-grade classroom teacher.
“I am excited to go back to where it all began,” she said.
Grace Green, R-1’s assistant superintendent of elementary schools, said Davis was chosen from among a pool of 11 candidates.
Superintendent Desi Kirchhofer said Davis deserved the promotion.
“Jeannie is very strong as an instructional leader,” he said. “She has had a variety of different roles within the district from the classroom teacher to reading specialist to reading interventionist.”
Davis taught first and fourth grade at Brennan Woods before becoming a reading specialist in 2009. She also has worked as a literacy coach in the district.
Smith said she, too, feels Jeannie is the right person to take over the principal job at Brennan Woods.
“I think that Jeannie has a lot of experience in the district, and also in academics in general that can help her step into the role of Brennan Woods and keep the community moving forward,” Smith said.
Davis said she was excited when she saw the job posting.
“I wasn’t really looking for a job, and I knew that I wanted to stay in the district,” she said. “I knew that I wanted to be a building principal.”
Davis takes on her new role on July 1.
“My goal for this first year is just to really focus on relationships with staff and students and families and community members,” she said.
Davis said she has worked in the Northwest District for her whole career because it feels like home.
“You definitely feel like you are part of the Northwest family,” she said.
Davis earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education in 2003 from Missouri Baptist University, a master’s degree in teaching with a special certification as a reading specialist in 2007 from Missouri Baptist University, and a master’s in educational administration in 2012 from Missouri Baptist University.
She currently is working toward an educational specialist degree from Southeast Missouri State University.
The Northwest Board of Education voted 6-0 June 23 to promote Davis to the principal job. Board member Gary Bonacker was not at the meeting.