Elliott County schools welcome new superintendent for new school year

ELLIOTT COUNTY, Ky. ( FOX 56 ) —The start of a new school year is always an exciting time but can also be nerve-wracking for students. The same goes for educators, especially those starting a new role

Monday morning Elliott County schools welcomed a new superintendent and she’s already a familiar face on campus.

After graduating from college, the new leader of Elliott County schools Dolly Fannin is no stranger to the community, Fannin returned to the classrooms where she was once a student

Superintendent Fannin began her teaching career in Elliott County as an elementary teacher and has held several positions within the district.

Still, 29 years later, Fannin said that Elliott County is home. As she begins her next chapter with Elliott County Schools, she said her goal is to help improve the district as a whole and create an environment where students can thrive.

“When they graduate, when they, or, you know, if they move away that they feel confident and competent in their abilities to be able to be successful in whatever they want to do,” said Fannin. “When I was principal for a little while, I just started seeing things that I thought that I can improve our district. So that made me go back and get my superintendent certification. So, it just sort of experiences that I was placed in and support from colleagues of Dolly you can do this.”

But as the return to school may be dreaded by students, staff members say teachers are ready to help educate, care for, and change their lives.

Elliott County Schools is helping establish a welcoming and supportive environment for the district. Fannin said staff will be focusing on what the future of education will look like in Elliott County.

Over the last few years, an initiative called “Portrait of a Learner” has helped focus on creating a well-rounded student and is a vision for what success looks like beyond academics.
It’s broken into five categories; responsible and adaptable learner, creative and critical thinker, motivated and engaged citizen, confident and effective communicator, and resourceful and collaborative contributor.

Fannin said the framework of this initiative will impact the classroom for years to come.

“If we can have them to be, you know, engaged and engaged citizen, that they’re able to communicate, that they’re able to think outside the box as critical thinking, that they’re able to work with others having those, soft skills, I guess, per se, to be able to enhance their academics. So, no matter what field they go in that they’re able to adapt and be successful in whatever role that they choose to follow,” Fannin said.

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Fannin is also expanding a new program called JAG , which stands for Jobs for America’s Graduates. It was an initiative in the high school last year and is now transferring to the middle school. It helps get students job-ready by developing skills they may not get to sharpen in the classroom.

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