A day after being unanimously picked as the next superintendent of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, Dr. Beverly Emory toured West Forsyth High and Southwest Elementary last week as part of a whirlwind glimpse of the county. At West, Emory stopped in to English, history and science classes, escorted by principal Charles McAninch.
“I’m excited to be here because I’ve only been in the building for a few minutes and I think I’ve heard ‘West is best!’ five times,” she told a group of teachers. She chatted with teachers and students as she looked over some of the schools that will fall under her guidance when she assumes the new post July 1. Her county tour began at 6:30 a.m. She made it to West at 2 p.m. and left for Southwest Elementary at 3 o’clock.
A former middle school teacher, she told a group of West faculty, “I want you to know that I do understand your challenges and what you go through as teachers. I plan to have a good, open relationship with you and help in any way that I can. One of the things we did in Pitt County was ‘Sweets with the Supe’ where we brought snacks and talked in a very informal way. It provided a great opportunity to say ‘I’m struggling with this, or ‘why are we doing that.’ It was just a nice chance to have a good exchange and maintain an open line of communication. That is something I would like to continue here because it helps me stay connected and I find that I always learn something.”
Last week, the Board of Education voted unanimously to hire Emory. She currently serves as the Pitt County Schools superintendent, a position she has held since 2006.