Augusta, ME – The Maine Principals’ Association (MPA) is pleased to announce that Kimberlee Bennett, Assistant Principal of South Portland High School, has been named Maine’s NASSP Assistant Principal of the Year. She will be honored by the MPA at its annual awards banquet at the Spring Conference on April 25, 2019, at the Samoset Resort in Rockport, Maine.
Miss Bennett received the award based on her authentic, student-centered leadership approaches in her seven years as Assistant Principal of South Portland High School. Miss Bennett has a track record of addressing school issues in a positive, proactive manner, including the “Hassle to Tassle” initiative and efforts to ensure that all students feel as though they belong at her school.
In announcing Miss Bennett’s selection as 2019 Maine’s NASSP Assistant Principal of the Year, MPA Executive Director Richard Durost noted, “Miss Bennett’s efforts in recognizing a changing student population at South Portland High School and her impact on the positive culture of the school is commendable. Significant increases in the school’s graduation rate and her involvement as an instructional leader all lead to the conclusion that she is an outstanding Assistant Principal!”
Miss Bennett received her Bachelor’s degree in Special Education from the University of Maine at Farmington in 1997. She then went on to earn her Masters of Educational Leadership from the University of Southern Maine in 2011.
She began her educational career in 1997 where she was a Special Education teacher for two years in Fryeburg. She then went on to Gorham Middle School as a special education teacher for twelve years. Miss Bennett then moved to South Portland High School where she has served as Assistant Principal for the past seven years.
Miss Bennett is a member of the Maine Principals’ Association and the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).
The Maine Principals’ Association is a professional association representing Maine’s K-12 educational leaders. The Association dates its history back to 1921 and focuses its work on promoting the principalship, educational leadership, and promoting and administering interscholastic activities in grades 9-12.