Lawmakers select 18 people to serve on new education commissions

RALEIGH, N.C. — State lawmakers on Thursday appointed 18 members of the education community to serve on two commissions – the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Commission and Professional Educator Preparation and Standards Commission.

The Teaching Fellows Commission was created to determine which programs will participate and which students will receive forgivable loans starting in the 2018-19 academic year. The Teaching Fellows program recruits top students to enter the teaching profession by providing them with tuition help and leadership training in exchange for a promise to teach in North Carolina for at least four years.

The Educator Preparation Commission, established in Senate Bill 599, will make recommendations to the State Board of Education about all aspects of teacher preparation, licensure, continuing education and standards of conduct.

Mariann Tillery, dean of the Stout School of Education at High Point University, was appointed by the Senate to serve a two-year term on the Teaching Fellows Commission.

Jennifer Olson, education department head at Meredith College, was appointed by the House to serve a two-year term on the Teaching Fellows Commission.

The following people were appointed by the Senate to serve on the Professional Educator Preparation and Standards Commission:

  • Patrick Miller – superintendent of Greene County Schools
  • Meaghan Loftus – principal of Ashley Park PreK-8 School in Charlotte
  • Ellen McIntyre – dean of the Cato College of Education at UNC Charlotte
  • Hank Weddington – dean of the College of Education and Human Services at Lenoir-Rhyne University
  • Anthony Graham – dean of the College of Education at North Carolina A&T State University
  • Lauren Genesky – English teacher at Millbrook High School in Raleigh
  • Glenda Jones – assistant superintendent of Cabarrus County Schools
  • Michael Maher – assistant dean for Professional Education and Accreditation at NC State University College of Education

The following people were appointed by the House to serve on the Professional Educator Preparation and Standards Commission:

  • Aaron Fleming – superintendent of Harnett County Schools
  • Joseph Childers – principal of Simon G. Atkins Academic and Technology High School in Winston-Salem
  • Van Dempsey, III – dean of the Watson College of Education at UNC Wilmington
  • Ann Bullock – dean of the School of Education at Elon University
  • Connie Locklear – director of the Indian Education Resource Center in the Public Schools of Robeson County
  • Robin Hiatt – teaching and learning coach with Johnston County Schools
  • Westley Wood – executive director of Personnel and Human Resources for Wilkes County Schools
  • Samuel Houston Jr. – president and CEO of the North Carolina Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Center

Both Senate Bill 599 and the Teaching Fellows Program were sponsored by Sen.

Chad Barefoot

, R-Wake, who announced the appointments in a news release Thursday.

“I am grateful to the education leaders in our state that have committed to serve on these important commissions,” Barefoot said in a statement. “I am confident that they will serve the commissions and the students and teachers of North Carolina well in their new roles, and I look forward to working with them to improve our state’s teacher pipeline.”

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