Release Date: 5/6/2015
Contact: Office of Communications, 410-887-6111

Halstead Academy Principal Jennifer Mullenax chosen as 2015-16 BCPS Principal of the Year

TOWSON, MD. – Jennifer Mullenax, principal at Halstead Academy in Towson since 2010, today was named Baltimore County’s newest Principal of the Year.

Baltimore County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. S. Dallas Dance named Mullenax the 2015-16 Baltimore County Principal of the Year during a ceremony this evening at George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology in Towson.

“Jennifer Mullenax and her staff have provided leadership, vision, and drive to create a vibrant, high-achieving learning environment at Halstead Academy," Dr. Dance said. “Like all true leaders, she has invested herself and her talents into making her school and its students the best they can be.
Halstead is a model of how a school can thrive with the right combination of leadership, energy, attitude, and support."

At the same ceremony, Dr. Dance named Orly Mondell, an 11-year educator and social studies teacher at New Town High School in Owings Mills, as the school system’s 2015-16 Teacher of the Year.

This is the third year that BCPS has honored its 174 school leaders with the Principal of the Year Award. Four other BCPS principals were finalists for the Principal of the Year honor for 2015-16. They are:

  • Melissa DiDonato of Padonia International Elementary School
  • Doug Elmendorf of Chase Elementary School
  • Jonná Hundley of Chapel Hill Elementary School
  • Jean Wilson of Pine Grove Elementary School

In addition to her current role, Mullenax also has served as a classroom teacher, an assistant principal at Chapel Hill Elementary School, and central office administrator. She holds a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Towson University and a master’s degree in leadership and supervision from Goucher College; she is currently pursuing a doctorate in education from Towson University.

“(I) pursued education because of a belief in kids and a love of learning," Mullenax said in a statement for the Principal of the Year selection panel. “(I) hold a firm belief that every student has the potential to learn, grow, and meet with success; it is our job as educators to figure out how to make it happen for all kids."

The Principal of the Year receives a variety of awards and gifts from the school system, the Education Foundation of Baltimore County Public Schools, and Baltimore County's business community, including a $1,000 cash award, 40-inch flat-screen television, attendance at a professional development conference, and a dedicated personalized parking spot at school.

The BCPS Teacher and Principal of the Year program thanks sponsors NTA Life and the Education Foundation of Baltimore County Public Schools as well as donors including the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Brick Bodies, Discovery Education, Hewlett-Packard, and The Food Market.

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