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Sussex Academy announces new school administrators

July 16, 2020

Sussex Academy recently announced new dean positions as the school expands to open elementary grades for the 2020-21 school year.

Elementary School Dean Connie Hendricks has more than 25 years of experience in teaching and administration. She has an undergraduate degree in human resource management and a master of education degree from Wilmington University.

Hendricks has taught various subjects including art, math, language arts and social studies. Over the years, she has instructed students from prekindergarten through eighth grade. Hendricks transitioned to administration when she became head of the Upper Level of the Centreville School in 1999. She served in this leadership position until 2008 when she became the school’s director of admission, overseeing enrollment and financial aid.

In 2009, Hendricks became head of school for the Jefferson School. She has served on and led many committees including strategic planning for the Centreville School and the Jefferson School, Middle States reaccreditation for the Centreville School and The Jefferson School, and Independence School’s social studies and mathematics committees. Hendricks has served on visiting teams for the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, and currently serves on the board of the Delaware Association for Environmental Education.

Middle School Dean Tom Peet grew up in Sussex County and chose to enter the field of education even before high school graduation. He has always enjoyed problem solving and helping others along their educational journeys. He's worked in several fields including educational technology, mathematics and special education. Peet joined the Sussex Academy faculty in the 2018-19 school year as coordinator of student services.

High School Dean Sherry L. MacBury has been working in the educational sphere for more than 20 years, providing leadership, professional development and coaching services for schools and school systems, as well as serving as a strategic partner to help build capacity and improve practice. A former teacher, high school counselor, high school principal, assistant superintendent and deputy chief academic officer, she holds a doctorate degree in educational leadership and policy. Navigating the challenges of being a mom to 10 children, she appreciates and empathizes with parents’ experiences with children who have mental health challenges, and realizes the need to end the stigma surrounding these difficulties and build a community of support.

MacBury served as a principal at McKean and Glasgow high schools. Under her leadership, within three years McKean High became the only comprehensive high school in Delaware to achieve Adequate Yearly Progress after restructuring, and Glasgow realized double-digit gains and achieved Adequate Yearly Progress after one year.

Two of McKean’s model programs implemented under MacBury’s leadership also received the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce’s Superstars in Education Award – the Freshman Advisory Program and Attendance Recovery Program. She also earned recognition as Administrator of the Year by the Delaware School Counselors Association.

Upon completion of her doctorate degree in educational leadership and policy, MacBury accepted a position as an assistant regional superintendent of high schools in the School District of Philadelphia. There, she implemented a dashboard monitoring tool to track progress of her assigned schools relative to their School Improvement Plans and make projections for Adequate Yearly Progress. She also led teams through a systematized monthly walkthrough process designed to improve teaching and learning in schools. The high school region had the highest gains in the history of the school district at the end of the 2009-10 school year.

MacBury’s experience at Mastery Charter Schools as a deputy chief academic officer of specialized programs allowed her to develop alternative programs for students in violation of serious infractions per the code of conduct, and special needs programs and services. She developed a vision and mission for the newly created specialized services unit to include psychological and social work services. She led her team in developing monitoring tools to ensure programs and services delivered to students were appropriate.

In most recent years, MacBury has worked in education technology, conducting professional development and coaching services on assessment and data analysis for schools and school systems, as well as serving as a director to partner with schools and school systems with the purpose and intent of building capacity, meeting adult learners at their readiness levels and supporting big shifts in practice.

Sussex Academy is a public charter, tuition-free school with a main campus and an elementary school campus, both in Georgetown. The school serves students in kindergarten through 12th grade. For more information, go to www.sussexacademy.org.

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