SPRINGDALE -- Chelsea Jennings of Lakeside Junior High School is this year's national assistant principal of the year, the National Association of Secondary School Principals announced Friday.
"Since hearing the news, I have had a smile from ear to ear and maybe shed a few happy and emotional tears," Jennings said.
The association honors assistant principals who advance their profession and provide top-quality learning opportunities for students, according to a news release from the group.
"We are proud to recognize Chelsea Jennings as the 2021 NASSP assistant principal of the year for her tremendous leadership in developing a positive school culture to ensure the well-being and safety of her students, their families and their community," Ronn Nozoe, the association's chief executive officer, said in the release.
"We salute Ms. Jennings' drive and efforts to prioritize the social-emotional well-being of her students through innovative solutions and continued advocacy. During one of the most challenging years ever faced by the education community, it's inspiring to see how Ms. Jennings has worked to support and empower families to feel safe and connected."
Jennings said she is honored to receive the recognition.
"I am excited to represent the work we do in Springdale to support every child," she said. "I know this award brings with it an important responsibility and opportunity to use my voice to shape the future of education, a task I accept with pride and gratitude."
Jennings is in her fifth year as assistant principal at Lakeside. She taught two years at Kelly Middle School and six years at Springdale High School before becoming a district teacher on special assignment, according to the Springdale School District's website.
She is the second assistant principal in Arkansas to win the national award, district spokesman Rick Schaeffer said. The other was Michael Shepherd in 2011 when he was an assistant principal at Springdale Har-Ber High School. Shepherd is now principal at Lakeside.
The association's news release noted Jennings led an initiative to make trauma-informed social-emotional learning interventions and resources available for every adult and student. She partnered this year with Ozark Guidance to expand school-based counseling services with an additional therapist and behavioral paraprofessional, doubling the number of students receiving services, according to the release.
She also led professional development focused on social-emotional learning strategies to ensure students and staff could return to work. She made an extra effort to assist families, including getting a washer and dryer donated to launder clothes and masks, and coordinate resources to provide internet, clothes and holiday presents for struggling families, the release stated.
Superintendent Jared Cleveland noted Jennings' significant contributions to the district.
"She has worked her way from teacher to curriculum specialist to assistant principal with a focus on impactful curriculum that nurtures the whole child," Cleveland said. "She has been and will continue to be a leader on all levels. She is an outstanding educator with a brilliant future."