Durham 'Principal of the Year' named NC regional finalist

Shearer, who works at City of Medicine Academy, is representing the North Central Region of the state. 

In the coming weeks, a state selection committee will review the portfolios of the eight regional winners and visit each candidate’s school campus.

Results of the site visits, portfolio assessments and personal interviews will be used to determine the winner. The Wachovia North Carolina Principal of the Year will be announced at an event in the spring.

Shearer was named Durham's principal of the year in November. She received $1,000, a plaque and a gift card to a local restaurant.

She has worked in Durham Public Schools since 1993 and has been principal of CMA since 2008. She served as principal of Lakewood Elementary from 2005-08.

Shearer also worked as a program administrator at Hillside High School from 2002-05 and was principal at E.K. Powe Elementary from 1996-2002. In addition, she was an assistant principal at Holt Elementary from 1993-96.

She is pursuing a doctorate in educational leadership and holds a bachelor of art in English and philosophy from the University of York and a certificate of education from Westminster College in Oxford, England.

She also earned a master’s degree in special education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an administrative certification from North Carolina Central University.