Newark, MD, April 18, 2023– At today’s Worcester County Board of Education meeting, several school-based administrative appointments and transfers were announced. The new assignments are effective July 1, 2023.
Two principal announcements and one principal transfer were announced for Snow Hill area schools:
- Current Snow Hill Elementary School Principal Matthew Record will transfer to Snow Hill Middle School following Dr. Mary Anne Cooper’s retirement in June.
- Erica Matlock will succeed Record as principal. Matlock has served as assistant principal at Snow Hill Elementary since 2019 following two years of service in the same role at Showell Elementary School. She brings 25 years of instructional experience to the role with 18 years in Worcester County.
- Leland Green was appointed to helm Snow Hill High School, following Dr. Kimberly Purvis’ retirement from the principalship. Green has been with Worcester County for nine years, and has most recently served as Assistant Principal at Stephen Decatur, a role he has held since 2017.
Snow Hill Middle School Assistant Principal Jennifer Howard will transfer to the same role at Snow Hill Elementary School. Dr. Lavonya Dashiell was appointed to fill Howard’s vacancy at Snow Hill Middle School. Dashiell, who most recently served as a Curriculum Resource Teacher and Title I Specialist at Pocomoke Elementary School, brings 23 years of experience to the role, 22 of which in Worcester County.
Snow Hill Elementary School’s (SHES) LaVerne Cray will serve as assistant principal at Showell Elementary School, following Karen Marx’s retirement from the role. Cray has served her entire 30-year career in Worcester County, the last 20 years as SHES’s school counselor.
Lastly, Deshon Purnell, who currently serves as assistant principal at Buckingham Elementary School, will transfer to Stephen Decatur High School, following Green’s transition to Snow Hill High School.
“I am confident that these changes will lead to greater educational opportunities for our students and continue the positive progress of our school system,” said Superintendent of Schools Lou Taylor. “We consistently have a deep pool of incredibly talented educational leaders here in Worcester County, and while we have not yet filled all of the administrative roles, we have made a great start today. Congratulations to those announced today, and I thank them for their commitment to bring their best to these new roles.”