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A Rutherford County native was named the 2023 Principal of the Year by the Rutherford County Schools.
Julie Powell, who graduated from East Rutherford High School in 1988, and became principal at the Rutherford Opportunity Center (ROC) in 2017, received the recognition on August 8 at the annual teacher/administrator assembly to kick off the new school year.
"I consider this a huge honor because I am a proud product of Rutherford County Schools!," said Powell.
"If I'm honest, the credit should go to my staff. They show up every day and make it happen," she said.
She said the biggest challenge at the ROC is "meeting each individual student where they are, not where we want them to be or where we think they should be."
"Our team is the best, bar none, at developing relationships and making connections with students, Powell continued." That's where it is for us, without this piece our students will not be successful here. We strive to create a culture where all students feel safe, valued and important.
"The absolute best part of the day is seeing the smile on a student's face when they feel proud of an accomplishment. Sometimes these are big, like ringing our Graduate Bell, and sometimes it can be as simple as making 5 points higher on a test.
"My hope for this school year is that we can help our students reach their individual goals, however big or small they may be, and begin to help them see and believe that they deserve to be successful at school and in life," Powell added.
Powell was a basketball standout at East Rutherford. She went to the University of North Carolina at Greensboro on a full basketball scholarship.
At East Rutherford she passed her 1,000 point during her junior year in basketball and was inducted into the East Rutherford Hall of Fame.
She also served on the Rutherford County Special Olympics Committee for many years.
In 1996 she received her BS from Gardner-Webb University and in 2021 her Masters Degree from Converse.
She began her career with the Rutherford County School as an EC (Exceptional Children) teacher at East Rutherford in 1996 and was later named Assistant Principal at East and served as Assistant Principal at Chase from 2015 until she was named principal at the ROC.
Powell is married to Rick Powell, electronics technician at AT&T. The couple have three children: daughter Gracie, graduated from WCU with a BS in Biology and has recently applied to NC State College of Veterinary Medicine ; son Jon is a student at Isothermal Community College and Dawson, who is also attending ICC and is working toward an associate degree in engineering. He plans to transfer to UNCC to work toward a BS in mechanical Engineering.
Powell's parents are Joe and Margaret Bright of Forest City.
