According to a press release from Muncie Community Schools:

June 14, 2022, the Muncie Community Schools (MCS) Board of Trustees announced two new principals, two new assistant principals and one new teacher and director of English Learners are set to join the district during their regularly scheduled meeting.

The following is a list of the names of and the positions held by each new hire.

·         Ben Williams – Principal, Northside Middle School

·         Aiesha Allen – Principal, North View Elementary

·         Kayla Arguello – Asst. Principal, Muncie Central High School

·         Randy McCracken – Asst. Principal, Southside Middle School

·         Kelsey Pavelka – Teacher and Director of English Learners

Williams previously spent five years as principal of Mt. Vernon Middle School (MVMS) in Fortville, Indiana, following four years as the school’s assistant principal. At MVMS, he led student academic progress improvement programs and helped usher in a $25 million multi-year school renovation.

Allen was previously a West View Elementary School teacher for 15 years before being promoted to the Master Teacher position at North View Elementary School for the 2021-22 academic year.

Arguello is a Muncie native and has spent the past three years as assistant principal at Decatur Middle School near Indianapolis and has a decade of education experience. She received the “Academic Top Ten Award” three different years while at Franklin Central High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, from 2016 to 2021.

McCracken joined MCS as the temporary interim principal at Grissom Elementary School during Brittany Charles’ pregnancy leave and subsequently moved to Southside Middle School to assist the new principal. He said he enjoyed it so much, he decided to become a full-time employee when offered the assistant principal position.

“Being at Southside has been a good experience, and I think there are a lot of good things happening at Southside,” McCracken said. “There are a lot of good things happening at Muncie schools, and I appreciate all the support I’ve had. It feels real comfortable.”

Although Pavelka has been away from MCS for a year, she returns as the teacher and director of English Learners for the entire district. She previously taught in the Spanish Dual Language Immersion Program at West View Elementary School, where she received numerous awards and accolades. Her focus is now to grow and strengthen the English Learners program, which has already grown significantly with the Afghan refugees who joined the district during the 2021-22 academic year.

“Our public schools are the pathway to providing every child with a quality education where they are safe, inspired and empowered to create a better future for themselves and their families,” Pavelka said. “Creating this role shows that the MCS Board of Trustees is committed to the success of all our multilingual families in Muncie, and I am excited to expand and innovate our approaches to multilingual education.” 

For more information, visit Muncieschools.org

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