W.R. McNeill Elementary principal announces retirement plans

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. -W. R. McNeill Elementary School Principal Kelli Brooks has announced plans to retire at the end of the school year.

The announcement was made at a school faculty meeting on Wednesday afternoon, Feb. 15, 2023, according to Bowling Green Independent School District.

Kelli Stice Brooks began her career at McNeill Elementary as a student-teacher in 1996, and she returned to teach full-time in 1997.

Brooks says, “Throughout my career, I’ve never wanted to be anywhere else,” noting the school’s pride, community involvement, and commitment to excellence.

In 2006, after eight years of teaching, Brooks was named Kentucky’s Elementary Teacher of the Year, an award then-principal Deborah Ecton said recognized the experiences Brooks provided for students in her first grade classroom.

A few years later, Brooks set a goal to become a principal, and in 2013, she was hired as the fifth principal of McNeill Elementary.

Since becoming principal, and throughout the last decade, the school district says Kelli Brooks has helped W. R. McNeill Elementary maintain high academic achievement as measured by multiple accountability systems.

The school was named a Leader In Me Lighthouse School in 2016, and in 2017-2019, the school was a Leader In Me Lighthouse School of Academic Distinction.

Brooks also led through efforts to expand the school with the construction of a new cafeteria in 2014-2015.

With her supportive leadership and encouragement, BGISD says several teachers and school organizations have earned opportunities and recognition at the state and national level. Three teachers from McNeill are featured in the best selling book, “Powerful Task Design,” and five teachers have earned National Board Certification for a total of seven teachers at the school with that distinction.

Lauren Coffey was a finalist for Kentucky Elementary Teacher of the Year in 2021, and Dylan White was named a GoTeachKY Ambassador in 2021. The school’s Academic Team and STLP teams have competed and achieved at the state levels, and four Odyssey of the Mind teams have competed in World Finals.

While sharing her plans to retire, Brooks says, “This has been a difficult decision to make. I struggle to find words that adequately describe how much my time at McNeill has meant to me. I still sincerely love the students, staff and families of McNeill Elementary, but feel that it is time for me to slow down and spend more time with my family.”

The school is currently the largest elementary school in the Bowling Green Independent School District, with approximately 450 students enrolled in grades K-5.

Superintendent Gary Fields says he will soon meet with members of the McNeill Site-Based Decision Making Council to develop more detailed plans for hiring the next principal. He hopes to have a new leader for the school selected by May 1, 2023.