Robbinsville – Angie Knight was named the Region 8 Superintendent of the Year and will compete with seven superintendents from the rest of state for N.C. Superintendent of the Year.
Region 8 includes school districts in Buncombe, Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, Polk, Rutherford, Swain and Transylvania counties, as well as Asheville.
She was selected for the honor by the Western North Carolina Superintendents Council, said April Spencer of the Western Region Education Service Alliance, who announced the award at Tuesday morning’s meeting of the Graham County Board of Education.
“They elected Angie to represent them in the N.C. Superintendent of the Year process,” said Jan Webster, director of the Western Region Education Service Alliance. “Her efforts to ensure students are the focus of the school system have included safety programs, a rapid response to pandemic issues and promoting academics across her schools. It is clear that Angie’s focus is on each students overall success.”
Knight was unaware that she had received the honor until it was announced Tuesday.
Assistant Superintendent Robert Moody asked for an addition to Tuesday’s agenda to talk about working conditions at Graham County Schools, and then “complained” about Knight’s policy of keeping students first, working 10- to 12-hour days, obtaining millions of dollars in school grants, keeping schools open during the pandemic, leading by example, and even teaching personal character to kindergartners.
He brought her a cookie and stepped aside for Spencer to make the formal announcement.
Knight has been superintendent of Graham County Schools for nine years. She was assistant superintendent for five years before that, and director of federal programs at the district for several years before that. She taught special education in Graham County for eight years. Her degree is in special education.
“I work with some amazing superintendents,” Knight said during Tuesday’s meeting. “Our region is the best.”
Other news and notes
* Moody briefed the school board about measures the district has taken to keep schools safe, following recent mass shootings including one at a Texas elementary school.
“Kids can’t learn if they don’t feel safe or if they are hungry,” Moody said.
He ran through a lengthy list of security measures in place at the schools, ranging from dedicated school resource officers to opaque windows, security cameras, and nearly impenetrable locking mechanisms on classroom doors. In short, as long as human error doesn’t interfere, Graham County school children are safe in their classrooms and on campus from active shooter situations.