Samantha Woods is the new principal of Valley West Elementary School. Woods transitioned from Alief ISD to HISD in 2015 and has served as a science lab teacher, teacher specialist, and assistant principal. During her tenure at Valley West, she has focused on building strong academic programs and accountability systems for the diverse population she serves. She earned her bachelor’s degree from University of Phoenix, Houston Campus, and her master’s degree from Lamar University, Beaumont.
Jerri Nixon has been selected as the new principal of Westbury High School. Nixon began her career at Hogg Middle School as a Language Arts teacher. She then served as the assistant principal at Black Middle School and Bellaire High School before becoming the principal of Herod Elementary. She has also supported HISD in the Human Resources Department. Most recently, Nixon served as an Assistant Principal at Westbury High School for the last 5 years. She earned her educational degree from Texas A&M University and obtained a master’s degree in educational leadership from University of Houston and in construction management from Texas A&M University.
Cicely Williams has been selected as the new principal of Community Services K-12. She has been an educator with HISD for 14 years and most recently served as assistant principal at Scarborough High School, where she supported the Special Education and Career and Technical Education Departments. A product of HISD, she attended Brookline and Lovett elementary schools, Tanglewood Middle School and Madison High School. Her experience ranges from being a special education teacher, SPED and ESL department chairperson, and teacher/instructional specialist on the elementary, middle and high school levels. Williams has also held positions at Patrick Henry Middle School, Neff Elementary School, and Austin and Madison high schools. She holds a bachelor’s in Interdisciplinary Studies with a specialization in Special Education from Prairie View A&M University and a master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Houston-Downtown.
Queinnise Miller has been selected as the new principal of Marshall Middle School. Miller has served as an elementary and high school teacher, department chair, and educational trainer. She has also served as a middle school assistant principal. She also has a background in English as a second language, bilingual education, and foreign language instruction. She joined HISD six years ago and served as a senior manager for Leadership Development and a director in the Office of School Leadership. Most recently, Miller served three years as principal Smith Elementary School. While serving at Smith, she was responsible for the campus embracing a new and exciting culture, which included the expansion of its fine arts program and becoming a dual language campus. She holds a bachelor’s Spanish from University of Houston, a master’s in Educational Administration and a doctorate in Educational Leadership from Prairie View A&M University.
Tanya Edwards has been selected as the new principal of Baylor College of Medicine Academy at Ryan. She has been a part of Team HISD for 21 years and previously served as the principal of Thompson Elementary School. She has been instrumental in helping to turn around schools in HISD, including at Thompson, where she helped the campus reach academic improvements and earn TEA distinctions for four consecutive years. She completed her undergraduate and graduate studies at Prairie View A&M University, where she holds a bachelor’s in Interdisciplinary Studies and a master’s in Educational Administration. Edwards is currently in the Doctoral Program for Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of Houston-Clear Lake.
Erica Brame-Manuel has been selected as the new principal of Thompson Elementary School. Brame-Manuel began her career 15 years ago at Bastian Elementary School in HISD before transitioning to KIPP Public Schools in 2006. Her leadership roles include lead teacher, department chair, dean of instruction, and dean of students. Brame-Manuel was instrumental in helping Foerster Elementary School and Lawson Middle School out of Improvement Required status in one school year as the campus’ reading specialist. Most recently, she was the driving force as the ELA teacher specialist at Lawson Middle School which yielded double-digit gains in reading and writing. She earned a bachelor’s in Elementary Education from Wiley College and a master’s from Jones International University.
Erin Trent has been selected as the new principal of Stevens Elementary School. Prior to her appointment, Trent served as an assistant principal at Wainwright Elementary School and started her career as a pre-kindergarten teacher at Kandy Stripe Academy, as well as a curriculum writer at KIPP Houston. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Texas State University and has earned two master’s degrees in Educational Administration and Curriculum and Instruction from LeTourneau University.
Melinda Daugherty has been selected as the new principal of Smith Elementary School. She has 20 years of experience in education with her most recent position being the assistant principal for Smith Elementary for three years. Her educational experience includes serving as a first-, fourth-, and fifth-grade teacher specializing in working with English language learners. Daugherty’s leadership experience also includes her work as a literacy coach, instructional coordinator, and teacher specialist. She holds a bachelor’s in Education with minors in English and Music from Sam Houston State University, and a master’s in Educational Leadership from Lamar University.
Melissa Melchor has been selected as the new principal of Oates Elementary School. Melchor began her educational career as a teacher in HISD, with over 10 years of experience. She was part of the turnaround team at Marshall Elementary School in 2013 as a classroom teacher. She has served as an instructional specialist at Paige Elementary School and most recently as the assistant principal of Almeda Elementary School. Melchor holds a bachelor’s in Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of Houston and a master’s in Educational Leadership from Stephen F. Austin University.
Erica Avie has been selected as the new principal of R.P. Harris Elementary School. Avie began her career in Alief ISD where she taught middle school math for six years before joining HISD in 2014 at Woodson K-8. At HISD, she has served as an instructional math coach, assistant principal at Clifton Middle School, and a data-driven instructional specialist. At Clifton Middle School, she created an effective in-school interventions math program that helped to increase student growth and completed the first geometry class in more than 10 years. She has a bachelor’s in Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of Houston and a master’s in Educational Leadership from the University of Houston at Clear Lake.