Dr. Ernie Adkins knows how to make an impact at West Virginia schools and he is dedicated to student success under every circumstance, including challenging ones unique to most principals.
Adkins has a proven track record of raising the performance of schools where he has been a teacher or administrator. In his first year as a vice-principal, his school achieved the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) benchmark for the first time ever, due in large part to his interventions and successful team-building among faculty, even as the campus was undergoing major renovations that were disruptive to the school day. At Princeton Primary, his current school, 90% of students are reading at or above grade level by the end of kindergarten, giving them the best foundation for ongoing academic success. Adkins has been principal at Princeton Primary since it opened three years ago, and has led the new campus to an auspicious beginning.
There are also many stories about Adkins’s resourcefulness and leadership, particularly with situations that arise on rural campuses. For example, in his clear-headed way, he once calmly dealt with a rabid fox that had bitten a teacher and was trying to make its way into the school. When a licensed water treatment operator was required to maintain the school’s well system, Adkins passed the licensing test, thereby ensuring access to safe drinking water for his students. Although he has pointed out to colleagues that advanced degrees did not prepare him for these types of challenges, Adkins takes them on with the same passion and dedication that he brings to enhancing learning in the classroom.
Adkins is a valued mentor to several teachers and fellow principals officially, and many unofficially. He is the go-to person for innovative professional development and he is credited by many students for keeping them in school and not dropping out. He receives a constant outpouring of appreciative hugs and friendly visits from students. He is admired in his community for his humble, down-to-earth nature, his work ethic, and his ability to make positive change happen for the students of West Virginia.
