THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 12, 1996 TAG: 9605110125
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 20 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Education
SOURCE: STAFF REPORT
LENGTH: Short : 41 lines
The principal of Douglass Park Elementary School and the school's office manager were recently honored as ``the most outstanding in the state'' by the Virginia Association of Elementary School Principals.
C. Gordon Ellsworth, principal of the math, science and technology magnet school, was named a National Distinguished Principal.
Frances Williams was selected most outstanding school secretary in the state.
Ellsworth gives much of the credit for his own achievement to the school where he has spent the last seven years - two as vice principal and five as principal.
``Our school has experienced a tremendous amount of success over the last five years,'' Ellsworth said, ``and that's due to the teaching staff, the parents and students who go here.''
Ellsworth and his wife will be invited some time during the next school year to visit the White House and participate in a two-day recognition ceremony. He will also be available for limited speaking requests on the state level and will represent the National Association of Elementary School Principals.
Under Ellsworth's administration, attendance at parent-teacher conference days has increased by 30 percent, while student suspensions decreased from a high of 120 in the late 1980s to 25 for the 1994-95 school year. The school also had significant gains in standardized test and physical fitness scores. ILLUSTRATION: Ellsworth
Williams
by CNB