DERIDDER, La. -- This is a press release previously issued from the Beauregard Parish School Board, Public Information Officer, Kari Ifland.
S. Chad Schulz, principal of South Beauregard Elementary, has been named a finalist in the Louisiana Principal of the Year program. The program recognizes outstanding school principals on the elementary, junior high, and high school levels.
Nine principals from across the state, three each from the elementary, junior high, and high school categories, were named finalists for 2019-2020 program. School districts from across the state had the opportunity to nominate principals at each of the three levels who submitted portfolios along with video documentation for their application. Twenty-four semifinalists were named, and the nine finalists were chosen from among that group.
Each nominee participated in an interview in late June and winners were announced at the 13th Annual Cecil J. Picard Educators Excellence Awards Gala in late July in Baton Rouge.
Schulz earned a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Elementary Education along with a Post-Secondary Certification in Education Leadership from McNeese State University. He is a nineteen year veteran educator, serving his entire career in Beauregard Parish. He began teaching fifth grade in 2000 at Pine Wood Elementary, the same school he attended as an
elementary student.
"My drive for making an impact in education and for helping ignite a passion for learning in others began at Pine Wood Elementary," he stated. "When I was in elementary school, I could not have possibly understood all that my career would entail, but I knew that I wanted to be an educator and make a difference."
In 2011, Schulz transitioned from the classroom to administration as Assistant Principal (2011-2013) and then as Acting Principal (2013-2104) at Merryville High School. His time at the pre-K through 12th grade school afforded him the opportunity to see the "big picture" of a student's education from start to graduation and provided him with a vision to impact the educational path for the entire life of a student.
He was named Assistant Principal of South Beauregard Elementary in 2014 and served in that position for three years before being named Principal at the school. He continues to focus on the "big picture" for every student. His main focus has been early literacy, understanding that literacy is a direct prediction of a student's success through high school and beyond.
Schulz's advocacy platform for the Louisiana Principal of the Year program is "Louisiana Literacy Lagniappe" which focuses on a three-tiered approach that South Beauregard Elementary has implemented to excite students and teachers in promoting literacy.
Schulz is committed to making every student a success story and is focused on providing strategic skills and reinforcement so that students who pass through the doors of South Beauregard Elementary have the best foundation for their future.
