New Principal

What started for Robert McCollum as a two-year leave of absence from a teaching job in Chicago has expanded into a five-year stint guiding 300 students in a Christian school in Bogota, Colombia. That enrollment was about a tenth of what McCollum was accustomed to in Chicago, but that wasn't the biggest difference. McCollum, 44, said the work "really helped me to frame my own thinking about what Christian education should look like. " After serving as secondary principal and director of academics at El Camino Academy in Bogota, McCollum has returned to the U.S. to serve as the upper school principal for Annapolis Area Christian School.

What started for Robert McCollum as a two-year leave of absence from a teaching job in Chicago has expanded into a five-year stint guiding 300 students in a Christian school in Bogota, Colombia. That enrollment was about a tenth of what McCollum was accustomed to in Chicago, but that wasn't the biggest difference. McCollum, 44, said the work "really helped me to frame my own thinking about what Christian education should look like. " After serving as secondary principal and director of academics at El Camino Academy in Bogota, McCollum has returned to the U.S. to serve as the upper school principal for Annapolis Area Christian School.

Eddie Scott, principal of Meade Middle School, has been appointed as the new principal at Annapolis Middle School. Annapolis Middle is currently under the state's restructuring program for failing to meet federal testing targets in five of the past six years, school officials have announced. Annapolis Middle's current principal, Carolyn Burton-Page, requested another assignment at the end of the school year. Scott has been principal at Meade Middle since 2006 and was previously an assistant principal at Marley Middle, before working in both Baltimore and Prince George's County schools.

The Institute of Notre Dame, a 165-year-old private all-girls high school in the city, has selected Gail Donahue as its new principal, according to the school. Donahue is currently the assistant principal of professional development of Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney. She replaces Ann Seeley, who is retiring June 30 after 12 years as principal of IND, the school said. Donahue, of Ellicott City, has taught in Catholic schools for 34 years. She holds a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Pennsylvania State University, a master's degree in reading from Trinity University, and is expected to earn a doctorate in educational leadership from Notre Dame of Maryland University — where she is also an associate faculty member — this month, IND said.

CHILDREN ARE first here," says new Principal Orrester Shaw of Bryant Woods Elementary School.On the job since July 1, Shaw said he is already finding his new position "an exhilarating, delightful experience."

When she watches them stream through the school's front doors -- children full of joy and wonderment -- Florence Johnson thinks of herself as the guardian of an imperiled generation.Ms. Johnson, who served her first day as a principal yesterday at George Washington Elementary in Southwest Baltimore, describes her role this way:"In this job, I really think I'm like the 'Catcher in the Rye.' I'm the one here by the cliff catching the kids before they get to the edge, before they fall, because once they fall, they're lost."

ELDERSBURG -- The new principal at Carrolltowne Elementary School hopes to bring a global perspective to the job when she returns from a summer program at Harvard University.Nancy Chapin's fellow students in the 10-day program next month will be coming from Australia, Singapore, Canada, South Africa and Taiwan, as well as from all over the United States."What attracted me to this is that people from all over the world will be there," said Chapin, 48, of Westminster. The diverse viewpoints set the program apart from other graduate programs, she said.

Daric V. Jackson is greeting students in the lobby of Woodlawn High when a mother and daughter approach. "She had behavioral issues last year, but not this year because you're here," says the mother, Carrie Tucker, as she introduces herself and her daughter, LaTevia Carroll, to the new principal. "I heard you're not going to take anything from anyone. I heard you are the man to get the job done." That's just what Jackson wants to hear as he embarks on one of the toughest assignments in the Baltimore County school district.

Unlike students and teachers, the new principal of the county's largest high school isn't getting a long summer break.Since he moved up from assistant principal to the top job at Old Mill High School last month, Arlen Liverman, 45, said he has been designing a new in-school suspension program, planning how to ease ninth-graders' transition to high school and brainstorming ways to encourage staff and students to take educational risks.In an office plastered with nature posters, Liverman said he is more comfortable sitting around the coffee table in his office than behind his imposing desk.

Everybody noticed the changes at Annapolis High School yesterday, from the girls who arrived at school in midriff-revealing outfits to the boys caught snoozing in class. Yesterday - the day that about 75,900 county students returned to classes after a two-month summer break - appeared to be a fresh start for Annapolis High. The school, which has been troubled by discipline problems in the past, is under new administration for the first time in a decade. Students here had a lot to digest.

Three Baltimore City principals who were involved in separate controversies will not return to their posts after the school board approved interim leaders Tuesday. Janice Williams, the principal of the Institute of Business and Entrepreneurship, who was under investigation during the past school year for recruiting Filipino teachers to buy and resell Mary Kay beauty products, will not be returning. Williams, who was an independent sales director for Mary Kay, stood to gain financially from going to teachers' classrooms to ask for their credit cards to purchase lipstick, perfume, foundation and eye makeup, according to three of the teachers, who said they never intended to use the products and were unable to resell most of them.

Eddie Scott, principal of Meade Middle School, has been appointed as the new principal at Annapolis Middle School. Annapolis Middle is currently under the state's restructuring program for failing to meet federal testing targets in five of the past six years, school officials have announced. Annapolis Middle's current principal, Carolyn Burton-Page, requested another assignment at the end of the school year. Scott has been principal at Meade Middle since 2006 and was previously an assistant principal at Marley Middle, before working in both Baltimore and Prince George's County schools.

The Baltimore school board named 12 new principals last night, the first of at least 36 principal appointments expected between now and June. Some of the principal openings are the result of retirements, resignations and the creation of new schools. One is the result of a promotion. Schools chief Andres Alonso has said that not all principals will be asked back. At 11 struggling schools, the entire staff - including the principal - must reapply as a result of restructuring required by the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Alonso said he will ask the board to appoint at least another 12 principals in May and 12 more in June.

The day before dozens of teachers were to return to Northwest Middle in Taneytown to settle into their classrooms, the school's new principal was so excited he couldn't sleep. Steven Johnson said the sleepless Sunday night was confirmation that he had made the right decision to seek a transfer. After several years in various administrative posts with the Carroll County's school system, including most recently as director of curriculum and instruction, Johnson, 40, said he wanted a change.

Southwest Academy appoints new principal A new principal was appointed for Southwest Academy middle school this week, in place of a former Woodlawn High School principal who had been named to the position in May. Kevin D. Roberts, a former Western School of Technology assistant principal who shifted to Southwest Academy as assistant principal last month, was named principal at the county school board's meeting Tuesday. He replaces former Woodlawn High Principal Daric V. Jackson, who will become an assistant principal at Pine Grove Middle School.

NATIONAL Bomb hits CBS crew in Baghdad CBS television correspondent Kimberly Dozier and her two-man crew became part of the Memorial Day story they had set out to report when a car bomb exploded near them in central Baghdad, killing the two British crew members, an American soldier and an Iraqi translator. Dozier, 39, was critically injured. pg 1a Coal production pushed With coal prices at record highs, mining companies have been pushing to increase production, adding overnight and weekend shifts and generating more overtime hours for miners who have some of the most physically grueling jobs in the country.

The Carroll County Board of Education appointed a new principal at Carroll Springs School and assistant principals at four elementary schools.The board made the changes yesterday based on the recommendations of William H. Hyde, who becomes superintendent of schools tomorrow.Stephany M. Savar was appointed principal at the Carroll Springs School for special education students. She has been acting principal at the school since spring, when Principal Robin Farinholt became the county's assistant supervisor of special education.

The Carroll County school board yesterday appointed four new principals to fill vacancies at elementary schools, acting on the recommendations of Superintendent Brian L. Lockard.William E. Pearre, an assistant principal at Taneytown Elementary since 1995, was named principal at Winfield Elementary. He replaces longtime principal Raymond Mathias, who was killed last month in a car accident.Pearre began his 29-year career in the Carroll system as a teacher at Winfield in 1969.The new principal at Mount Airy Elementary is Thomasina D. Piercy, assistant principal at Friendship Valley Elementary since 1992.

Classes begin at many of Anne Arundel County's public schools tomorrow with new principals and new facilities. New full-day kindergarten programs, which are being phased in across the county, will start at 19 elementary schools. The school system installed 21 portable classrooms to accommodate that program, as well as 17 to relieve crowded schools and 10 for the International Baccalaureate program. School system officials have also hired 736 new teachers for more than 74,000 students in the county's 120 schools.