Patrick Henry Elementary School principal Ingrid Bynum has been named as ACPS Principal of the Year and a finalist for The Washington Post’s 2016 Principal of the Year.
Bynum was given the award by Superintendent Alvin L. Crawley in a surprise ceremony on Friday, April 8, 2016. Patrick Henry was fully accredited this school year, for the first time in three years. The school’s performance in the Standards of Learning (SOL) tests was so impressive that Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe visited the school on the day state accreditation results were released in October to personally congratulate Bynum, her staff and students on their high performance.
In February 2015, then U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan selected Patrick Henry Elementary School to see a pre-K classroom in action and take part in a roundtable discussion on the importance of early learning.
Bynum, who became principal of Patrick Henry in 2012, is seen as a large contributing factor to the yearly improvements at the school. In the three years since she joined the school, Patrick Henry went from Virginia Focus School status to full accreditation, achieving dramatic double digit gains in all content areas on the SOLs.
“I can’t believe this. I am never speechless and I’m speechless,” said Bynum, who was moved to tears when Superintendent Crawley presented her with flowers and congratulated her on her achievements.
“This is all down to my team. I could not have done any of this without them. I am so happy, I don’t know what to say. I just can’t wait to share this news with them,” Bynum said.
