Carole L. Kennedy

Director,
Missouri Council of
School Administrators Outreach,
Columbia, Missouri

Carole Kennedy is a leading national educator and provides educational services and training for teachers, principals, family and community partnerships all focused on providing quality programs for the education of children and youth.

Prior to her present position, Kennedy served as the Regional Facilitator for the Educational Testing Service, as Principal in Residence at the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards for three and a half years, and as a teacher and principal for thirty-eight years in the public schools of Missouri. In her capacity as a teacher and principal, she researched and developed programs to meet the educational needs of individual children and moved schools from "low academic achievement levels" to the "highest academic achievement levels." Her efforts included, but were not limited, to improving inservice training programs for teachers, the development of "model lessons" to meet the individual needs of students, and introducing peer-coaching teams to assist beginning teachers. Her efforts not only improved classroom instruction, but most important, increased individual student achievement. Kennedy also designed programs for parents to assist children at home.

As a result, Kennedy's career as an educational leader is distinguished by the highest professional honors. She was selected a National Distinguished Principal from the state of Missouri. In 1999, she was appointed by Secretary of Education Richard Riley to the position of Principal in Residence at the U.S. Department of Education, Washington, D.C. This non-political position was created to ensure that the voice of the practitioner was heard at the highest level of education decision-making. Executive Educator magazine recognized Kennedy as one of the Outstanding Educational Administrators in America.

Carole Kennedy has served as a member of the National Test Panel, the National Assessment Governing Board, the Missouri Commission on Performance, and a member of other state and national committees.

She was elected President of the National Association of Elementary School Principals, a 28,500 member association representing elementary and middle school principals in the United States. She served on the Wallace Reader's Digest Funds Advisory Board and on the National Commission for the Advancement of Educational Leadership.

Carole Kennedy holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia, a Master's degree from Truman State University and an Education Specialist degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.