Editor's note: This story has been updated to accurately reflect that Heather Handy had been the principal at Herschel V. Jenkins High School not Sol C. Johnson High School. The article has also been updated to correct that Carrie E. Gould Elementary School's principal Michelle Carthon was the principal last year, as well.
With the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System (SCCPSS) welcoming students on Aug. 1, families are bound to have questions and who better to outreach than your child's school principal?
There have been some changes in school leadership. Long-time Charles Ellis Montessori Academy principal Tanya Melville retired this past year as did Coastal Middle School principal Allison Schuster-Jones and Herschel V. Jenkins High School principal Heather Handy. All other high schools have retained their principals. With the closing of the Largo-Tibet Elementary School, Jennie Thompson shifted over to Lee Roy Myers Middle School, taking over for Marcus Scott who shifted to Building Bridges Middle School, which was previously led by Timothy Brown, who is now an assistant principal at Godley Station K-8 School.
There are also some leadership changes coming within the next month. As of Friday, SCCPSS's Public Information Manager Sheila Blanco has confirmed that Julian Childers (West Chatham Middle School), Rachel Hurst (Georgetown K-8 School) and Derrick Dozier-Muhammad (Sol C. Johnson High School) will serve as principals in their respective schools through the first month of the 2024-2025 school year before assuming new administrative roles in September.
Childers will become the Director of Secondary Curriculum and Instruction, while while Hurst and Dozier-Muhammad were reassigned to assume two newly created positions known as School Support Officers within the Office of School Leadership.
Blanco could not confirm who might be reassigned to fill the soon-to-be vacated principal spots. "My understanding is that some current AP’s [assistant principals] will be moved into those positions," Blanco wrote in an email. She noted any reassignments of individuals to principal positions remains unofficial until the school board approves such changes. "I would assume that will happen at the August board meeting," she stated.
For the time being, here's the most current listing of principals for all SCCPSS schools for the 2024-2025 school year.
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Elementary School Principals
- Bloomingdale Elementary School, 1700 Highgate Blvd., Savannah, Georgia 31302
- Benjamin Lam
- Otis J. Brock, III Elementary School, 1804 Stratford St., Savannah, 31401
- Desma Patterson
- James Henry Coy Butler Elementary School, 1909 Cynthia St., Savannah, 31415
- Lesley Jordan
- Early Learning Center at Henderson E. Formey School, 400 E Broad St., Savannah, 31401
- Erica Swindell-Foster
- Robert W. Gadsden Elementary School, 919 May St., Savannah, 31415
- Latasha Quarterman
- Garden City Elementary School, 4037 Kessler Ave., Garden City, Georgia 31408
- Kimberly Dozier
- Carrie E. Gould Elementary School, 4910 Pineland Drive, Savannah, 31405
- Michelle Carthon
- Bishop Gilbert Haven Elementary School, 5111 Dillon Ave., Savannah, 31405
- Dionne Young
- Virginia Heard Elementary School, 414 Lee Blvd.,Savannah, 31405
- Christa Smalls
- Sarah Mills Hodge Elementary School, 975 Clinch St., Savannah, 31405
- Samanthia Williams
- Jacob G. Smith Elementary School, 210 Lamara Drive,Savannah, 31405
- Channil Scott
- Juliette Gordon Low Elementary School, 15 Blue Ridge Ave., Savannah, 31404
- Jacqueline Harris-Solomon
- Marshpoint Elementary School, 135 Whitemarsh Island Road,Savannah, 31410
- Susan Ambrose
- May Howard Elementary School, 115 Wilmington Island Road,Savannah, 31410
- Kathleene Mahoney-Taylor
- Pooler Elementary School, 308 Holly Ave.,Pooler, Georgia 31322
- Stacey Mills
- Leiston Shuman Elementary School, 415 Goebel Ave., Savannah, 31404
- Evanita Wallace-Lewis
- Southwest Elementary School, 6020 Ogeechee Road,Savannah, 31419
- Teresa Peyton
- West Chatham Elementary School, 820 Pine Barren Road,Pooler, 31322
- Bridget Bryant-Gordon
- White Bluff Elementary School, 9402 White Bluff Road, Savannah, 31406
- Robert Lewis
- Andrea B. Williams Elementary School, 1150 WheatonSt., Savannah, 31404
- Tony Foy
- Windsor Forest Elementary School, 414 Briarcliff Circle,Savannah, 31419
- J'nai Gilbert-Collins
- Wings Elementary School, 400 E Broad St., Savannah, 31401
- Kevin Railey
Kindergarten - 8 (K-8) School Principals
- Charles Ellis Montessori Academy, 220 E 49th St.,Savannah, 31405
- Amanda Zito
- Esther F. Garrison School for the Arts, 649 W Jones StreetSavannah, 31401
- Aysha Parks
- Georgetown K-8 School, 1516 King George Blvd., Savannah, 31419
- Rachel Hurst
- Godley Station K-8 School, 2135 Benton Blvd., Savannah, 31407
- Eric Heady
- Herman W. Hesse K-8 School, 9116 Whitfield Ave., Savannah, 31406
- Alonna Curry-McMullen
- Isle of Hope K-8 School, 100 Parkersburg RoadSavannah, 31406
- Antonio Byrd
- New Hampstead K-8 School, 1700 Highgate Blvd., Savannah, 31302
- Brandi Brown
- Casimir Pulaski K-8 School, 1001 Tibet Ave., Savannah, 31419
- Christina Tucker
- Rice Creek K-8 School, 100 Mulberry Ave.,Port Wentworth, 31407
- Yvette Wells
Middle School Principals
- Building Bridges Middle School, 3609 Hopkins St., Savannah, 31408
- Marcus Scott
- Coastal Middle School, 4595 US Highway 80 East,Savannah, 31410
- Paul Sidney
- DeRenne Middle School, 1009 Clinch St., Savannah, 31405
- Tammy Broadnax
- John W. Hubert Middle School, 768 Grant St., Savannah, 31401
- Brian Dotson
- George A. Mercer Middle School at Davis-Edwards-Harris Educational Complex, 100 Priscilla D. Thomas Way, Garden City, 31408
- Christian Pantin
- Lee Roy Myers Middle School, 2025 E 52nd St., Savannah, 31404
- Jennie Thompson
- Southwest Middle School, 6030 Ogeechee Road, Savannah, 31419
- Caroline Gordon-Jelks
- STEM Academy at Bartlett, 207 E.Montgomery Crossroad, Savannah, 31406
- Lydia Taylor
- West Chatham Middle School, 800 Pine Barren Road, Pooler, 31322
- Julian Childers
High School Principals
- Alfred Ely Beach High School, 3001 Hopkins St., Savannah,31405
- Craig Daughtry
- Building Bridges High School, 3609 Hopkins St., Savannah, 31408
- Jemeela Brown
- Robert W. Groves High School at Davis-Edwards-Harris Educational Complex, 100 Priscilla D. Thomas Way, Garden City, 31408
- Monique Hazzard-Robinson
- Islands High School, 170 Whitemarsh Island Road,Savannah, 31410
- Jimmie Cave
- Herschel V. Jenkins High School, 1800 E DeRenne Ave.,Savannah, 31406
- Justin Durham
- Sol C. Johnson High School, 3012 Sunset Blvd.,Savannah, 31404
- Derrick Dozier-Muhammad
- New HampsteadHigh School, 2451 Little Neck Road,Bloomingdale, 31302
- Tawn Foltz
- Savannah Arts Academy, 500 Washington Ave., Savannah, 31405
- Anna Belue
- Savannah Early College High School at Savannah High, 400 Pennsylvania Ave., Savannah, 31404
- Christina Connors
- School of Liberal Studies at Savannah High, 400 Pennsylvania Ave., Savannah, 31404
- Stacie Pottenger
- Windsor Forest High School, 12419 Largo Drive, Savannah, 31419
- Joanna Brooks
- Woodville-Tompkins High School, 151 Coach Joe Turner StreetSavannah, 31408
- Alfred Mcguire
E-Learning Academy, Coastal Comprehensive and Charter School Leaders
- Savannah Chatham E-Learning Academy (SCELA)
- Arlethia Brown-Hall (principal)
- Coastal Georgia Comprehensive Academy
- David Ackerman
Charter school leaders sometimes are given different titles other than principal depending on decisions made by their governing boards. Each leader's title has been noted below.
- Coastal Empire Montessori Charter School, 301 Buckhalter Road, Savannah, 31405
- Stephanie Babco*ck (executive director)
- Oglethorpe Charter School, 7202 Central Ave., Savannah, 31406
- Kevin Wall (principal)
- Savannah Classical Academy, 705 E. Anderson St., Savannah, 31401
- Barry Lollis (CEO)
- Susie King Taylor Community School, 1709 Bull St., Savannah, 31401
- Yanis Medina (director)
- Tybee Island Maritime Academy, 714 Lovell Ave., Tybee Island, GA 31328
- Peter Ulrich (principal)
Joseph Schwartzburt is the education and workforce development reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at JSchwartzburt@gannett.com.
