Renay Johnson awarded Outstanding Principal of the Year

On Jan. 30, Blair principal Renay Johnson was named Montgomery County Public School Outstanding Principal of the Year by The National Board of Certified Teachers. Blair's own nationally certified teachers presented Johnson with the award at the 2014 National Board pinning ceremony.

Johnson went to the pinning ceremony to celebrate the Blair teachers who received the high recognition of being nationally board certified. During the ceremony, several Blair teachers, including Blair ESOL teacher Karen Shilling, went on stage to present Johnson the Outstanding Principal of the Year without her knowledge beforehand. "This was truly a surprise, I was there to recognize the teachers and then I won the award, I was very pleased," Johnson said.

This award was especially meaningful to Johnson because it was presented by Blair teachers, as opposed to a supervisor or community member. "It's nice [that] it came from the teachers because it's like them saying, 'we're glad you're our principal,'" Johnson said. According to Shilling, the winning administrator should exemplify clear, consistent, convincing evidence of; fostering collaboration and reflection as components of quality teaching, establishing and advancing teacher leadership opportunities for NBCTs or candidates and increasing student motivation in learning.

After being appointed as principal three years ago, Johnson has made many improvements to the school. She has installed a TV in Blair's cafeteria , created a less strict cell phone policy and started a Principal's Advisory Council composed of Blair students. In the future, Johnson hopes to make the lunch room more "teenage-friendly" including installing a microwave in the cafeteria.

Shilling delivered a speech about Johnson at the award ceremony. "She trusts our knowledge of our content as well as our knowledge of our students and encourages us to create and teach lessons that promote success for all Blair students, regardless of the program they are in," Shilling said in her speech.

Johnson acknowledges and appreciates teacher positive feedback. "I really like that the teachers stated that I improve moral and make Blair a place where everyone wants to work and feel appreciated and valued," she said.

In addition to the teachers, Johnson has received commendation from the Blair community as a whole. The Blair PTSA and Blair students have given Johnson their congratulations for winning the high honor, through flowers delivered to her office and nice messages on her twitter . Blair students have recognized Johnson's hard work. "She's really compassionate and good at what she does," sophomore, Kenneth Hill said.

Johnson will continue to try and make the Blair community the best that it can be. "I think as long as I keep improving upon myself and my vision is clear that we're here for kids and we want every kid to be successful I think that might earn me a second award," she said.