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Tonight’s Watauga County Board of Education Meeting Marks First With New WCS Supt. Scott Elliott

By Jesse Wood

July 14, 2014. Tonight’s Watauga County Board of Education meeting marks the first with new Supt. Dr. Scott Elliott at the helm.

Elliott was selected as the new superintendent of Watauga County Schools in May and his appointment went into effect on July 1. Former interim Supt. David Fonseca will return to his assistant superintendent position that he held previously.

Elliott will begin Monday’s meeting with the superintendent’s report, which takes place every meeting with the leader of the school system talking about the prior month while providing an outlook for the days and weeks ahead.

Elliott
Elliott

Elliott is coming from Transylvania County Schools (TCS), where he was the assistant superintendent. He worked in that school system for 18 years and held a number of other titles such as teacher, assistant principal, principal and director of secondary education. He was named TCS teacher of the year in 2000 and administrator of the year in 2012.

He is a native of Marion and a graduate of McDowell High School, so he is familiar with the culture and values of Western North Carolina, School Board Vice Chair Delora Hodges noted in the May meeting announcing the selection of the new superintendent.

“He has a sterling record of success in his current and previous positions, a passion for serving students, and a strong commitment to building the relationships so essential to successful schools,” Chair Dr. Lee Warren said. “I am confident he will provide the outstanding leadership our students need to achieve their potential as productive citizens and lifelong learners.”

In May, Elliott said that the “appeal of Watauga County to his family” was a key factor in his pursuit and subsequent acceptance of the position.

“There are very few communities around the state where we would want to live, raise our children, work, and have our children go to school. Brevard was one, and Watauga is one as well. It was a deliberate decision on our part to pursue living and working in Watauga County. We are looking forward to meeting new colleagues, making new friends, and serving the Watauga community for many years to come,” Elliott said.

That last phrase “for many years to come” was music to the ears of the school board, which has seen an unusually high turnover rate for the leading position in the school system over the past several years. Elliott marks the fourth superintendent to go along with at least two interim superintendents since 2007.

See the rest of tonight’s agenda here.