Lincoln Prairie Principal Amanda Stochl named Illinois PTA Outstanding Principal of the Year
Lincoln Prairie School Principal Amanda Stochl was chosen as the Illinois PTA Outstanding Principal of the Year. Stochl was nominated by the Lincoln Prairie PTSA (Parent Teacher Student Association).
"I cannot express how honored I feel to have been chosen for this award," Stochl said. "Strong parent-school partnerships are the foundation of student success. I feel fortunate to work in an environment that honors that relationship. Working alongside our PTSA and parent community is something I value a great deal as well."
The nomination form asked the PTSA to describe Stochl's relationship with students, with families and the community and with the PTSA. Some of the highlights from the nomination are as follows.
• Amanda has daily interactions in which she is able to support students. The part that is exceptional is that with every one of her interactions, she has a personal comment or question for the child. This helps to build a relationship, supports the students' self-esteem and maintains a positive school climate. Even though we have almost 400 students to keep track of, she manages to know the names, siblings and interests of all of our students. We cannot imagine anyone more suited to be a principal.
• Amanda is a true advocate for families within our community. We have seen Amanda on many occasions work to ensure a fair and level playing field for all families represented at our school. She shows this by having an open-door policy, welcoming parents and students to discuss ideas, challenges, or whoever just stops in to say hello. Amanda furthers this with an often voiced idea of "everything speaks," a philosophy that all our interactions with students and each other should be intentional and respectful.
• Amanda sends out weekly communications in conjunction with the PTSA newsletter. She contributes articles to the weekly newsletter that explain everything from standardized testing information to expectations around student-led conferences to upcoming/past school events.
• The teachers who work with Amanda are encouraged to send regular communication to parents and have followed her lead of open lines of communication between themselves and families.
• Amanda further ensures that as a PTSA we are always advocating for the students. She has created a leadership council that consists of students at all grade levels to discuss PTSA events/ideas. These students sign up to attend and present at upcoming PTSA meetings. They share the students' perspective and provide feedback regarding events, programs and services.
Stochl will receive a plaque during a presentation at the Illinois PTA Convention on April 2 in Springfield. For more information on the Illinois PTA convention visit www.illinoispta.org/convention.html.