Institute for School Innovation
Leadership Advisory Council
Robin E. Carroll
Rob Carroll is Principal of South Heights Elementary School in Henderson, Kentucky, a Project CHILD National Demonstration Site. Under Mr. Carroll’s leadership, South Heights has made tremendous academic gains and has been recognized as one of the nation’s most exemplary schools. In 2004, South Heights was one of six schools in the country to receive the prestigious National School Change Award.
Mr. Carroll was recognized as the Kentucky School Media Association Administrator of the Year in 2002, and received the ISI Innovation Principal of the Year Award in 2003. He was a finalist for the national ASCD Outstanding Young Educator Award in 2004. Mr. Carroll has two daughters, one who currently is a Project CHILD student at South Heights, and the other is a Project CHILD graduate, now in high school.
Mark Dugan
Mark Dugan is Principal of Treasure Coast Elementary School located in Sebastian, Florida. Treasure Coast was named a CHILD National Demonstration Site in 2010.. Under Mr. Dugan’s leadership, Treasure Coast has constantly improved as a school. The school has been designated as an ‘A’ school for the past two years. In 2007, Mr. Dugan received the ISI Innovative Principal of the Year Award at the Project CHILD National Conference.
Mr. Dugan was the first principal in Indian River County to embrace Project CHILD at Glendale Elementary School. By instituting Project CHILD, Glendale’s student body grew and grew with parents and students from other schools wanting to attend a school with Project CHILD. Mr. Dugan has been involved in Project CHILDfor the past eleven years and currently has three primary clusters and three intermediate clusters at Treasure Coast Elementary.
Gale Fulford
Gale Fulford has served in public education for more than 34 years as a teacher, curriculum writer, staff developer, and an area Reading specialist. However the most challenging and yet most rewarding position was that of school principal for the past 15 years. Cypress Trails Elementary joined the Project CHILD family during Ms Fulford's tenure as school principal.
Ms. Fulford has received several ISI special awards including an award for Innovative Leadership and the Above and Beyond Administrator of the Year. She also was recognized by Palm Beach County School's Safe Schools Department as the West Area's Character Counts Administrator. Ms. Fulford, is recently retired and is looking forward to starting her educational consulting firm, writing about maintaining healthy self-concepts in children and working with school leaders to build better readers.
Justin Matthews
Justin Matthews is the Principal of the Imagine School in North Port, Florida, a Project CHILD National Demonstration Site. Mr. Matthews is an expert in visionary leadership as well as instructional technology. Opening in 2008, Imagine School at North Port has quickly become known for its emphasis on individual student learning gains, strong instructional staff, use of research-proven educational programs (such as Project CHILD), and family oriented school climate.
Imagine School at North Port is a multiple national award winning school and has earned awards for character education, parent satisfaction, as well as the overall Imagine school of the year award in 2009. In 2010, Mr. Matthews was the recipient of the ISI Innovation Principal of the Year award.
Jane Perez
Jane Perez is the Principal of Chamberlain Primary School in New Britain, Connecticut. Ms. Perez began her career at the Institute of Living, a private psychiatric hospital in Hartford, Connecticut. There she learned a great deal about multidisciplinary teaming approaches, mental health and special education. Since then, Ms. Perez has worked as an urban educator, coach, and administrator for the past twenty years in Hartford and New Britain. Under her leadership, Chamberlain School has made continuous improvement in the areas of learning context, curriculum, instruction and assessment.
Chamberlain adopted the Project CHILD model in 2008 when the school underwent a restructuring process. Ms. Perez selected nine teachers to form three clusters in their first year as a primary school, and added a forth cluster in their third year. Chamberlain Primary School's strong implementation of the Project CHILD model earned them recognition as a National Demonstration Site. The school has transformed into an exciting, child-centered school of joyful classrooms! Ms. Perez is very proud of the accomplishments made by her team at Chamberlain and expects continued growth for all students to ensure that Chamberlain is "building the future, one CHILD at a time."
Linda P. Terranova
Linda Terranova is Principal and Founder of Western Academy Charter School in Royal Palm Beach, Florida. Since the school’s opening in 2003, Mrs. Terranova has overseen three expansion projects in the now 30,000 sq. ft. facility all in an effort to meet the high demands of the school’s wait list. Western Academy is a K-8 inclusion charter school with a current enrollment of 360 students.
Mrs. Terranova was recognized by the Florida Department of Education as a 2007 Turn Around Principal for her leadership in raising Western Academy to an “A” rated school. Under her direction the school has maintained its “A” rating for the last 4 years. Mrs. Terranova also received the ISI Innovation Principal of the Year Award in 2009. She is married and has two sons, both of whom are Project CHILD graduates, now in the school’s middle school.
Michael Wix
Michael Wix is Principal of Dishman-McGinnis Elementary School in Bowling Green, Kentucky, a Project CHILD Exemplary Visitation Site, where he feels blessed to work with a wonderful group of dedicated faculty and staff. Dishman-McGinnis serves a population in which 96% of the students qualify for Free/Reduced Lunches and over one-third are English Language Learners. In the five years Mr. Wix has been at Dishman-McGinnis, the school has made steady academic gains each year. Three years ago, Dishman began utilizing Project CHILD in the primary grades and in the 2009-2010 school year began building-wide implementation.
Along with Project CHILD, Dishman has initiated additional initiatives that support and complement the CHILD model. Dishman is associated with the Kentucky Center for Instructional Discipline (KYCID), which works to gain broader implementation of postive behavior supports amongst its member schools. Since involvement with KYCID, Dishman has seen a dramatic reduction in discipline referrals and an increase in on-task student behavior. Dishman is also involved in an initiative called "The Leader In Me" which focuses on student development of Steven Covey's "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People." The school has also taken part in Mike Rutherford's "Learning Centered Schools" and has just begun working with John Antonetti's "Look 2 Learning" Student Engagement Program.
Dishman also has a unique mentoring program, which has grown each year and utilizes dozens of community members, police officers, school and central office staff. They serve as individual mentors for students who would benefit the most from having a successful adult role model.
Prior to working in school administration, Mr. Wix served as the Director of Bands in both the Lyon County and Simpson County school systems in Kentucky. In 1999, he was recognized as the Outstanding High School Music Educator by the Kentucky Music Educator Association's Third District. He also serves as the Associate Music Minister at Rich Pond Baptist Church in Bowling Green. Mr. Wix is married to his wonderful wife Ruthie (who currently serves as an Elementary Curriculum Coordinator) and has two beautiful daughters.