Principal, assistant chosen as district's top administrators
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on October 7, 2008 1:46 PM
Patsy Faison
Diane Watts
Wayne County Public Schools announced its principal and assistant principal of the year Monday during the Board of Education meeting.
Patsy Faison, Tommy's Road Elementary School's only principal since it opened in 2000, was named Wachovia Principal of the Year for 2008-09. Diane Watts, assistant principal at Norwayne Middle School, was recognized as WCPS assistant principal of the year.
Mrs. Faison has more than 42 years experience in education, 30 of those in Wayne County. She started her career as a teacher in the Detroit Public Schools in 1966.
She came to Wayne County in 1978 as a teacher at Eastern Wayne Elementary School.
Her role as an administrator began in 1987, when she was named assistant principal at Meadow Lane Elementary. Six years later, in 1993, she became Meadow Lane's principal, where she served for two years before becoming principal at North Drive Elementary.
She holds a bachelor's degree from Winston-Salem State University and a master's degree and administrative certification from Campbell University.
Her previous honors in the school system include being named Teacher of the Year in 1983, Boss of the Year in 1994 by the Wayne County Unit of the N.C. Association of Educational Office Personnel; and Educator of the Year in 2000 by the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity.
Most recently, she assisted the district by serving as chairperson of the Closing the Achievement Gap Task Force and was moderator at the first community-wide Kitchen Table Conversation. She is also a member of the Governor's Education Summit Team.
As Principal of the Year, she will represent the district in the upcoming regional competition.
Mrs. Watts was named assistant principal of the year by the WCPS Principals and Assistant Principals Association, which established the award in 2007. It was created to recognize outstanding assistant principals who have proven themselves to be hard-working, dedicated to meeting student needs and going beyond what is required of them.
Her career in education began in 1977. She has been an elementary teacher at South Hoke Elementary School in Raeford. In 1983 she left the state to teach middle school in Bridgeport, Conn., returning to Wayne County in 1997, where she has held several administrative positions.
Mrs. Watts holds a bachelor's degree from N.C. Central University, a master's degree from Fayetteville State University, and a certificate in advanced studies from Fairfield University in Con-necticut.
In 2007, she was named Administrator of the Year by the school system's Edu-cational Office Professionals Association.