By Shawn Nowlin
Approximately 565 students attend Fairview Elementary annually. On April 12, the pupils learned who their new full-time principal through 2023 and the upcoming academic year will be – Kurrai Thompson, a former student herself.
Previously the school’s Acting Principal, Thompson is ready to get to work. Humbled by the opportunity, she wrote the following to parents, “I consider it a privilege to serve the students, families, teachers, and community. It is our goal at Fairview to implement the strategies in our division’s strategic plan, The Roadmap to Student Success. We pride ourselves on providing effective, high-quality instruction that meets the needs of all our students in a safe, inclusive learning environment.”
She added, “We also involve our school community by revitalizing the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and planning events to engage our students and families.”
Hired in 1994, Thompson has been an educator in Roanoke City Public Schools for the last 29 years. Roles Thompson previously served include Assistant Principal at Lincoln Terrace, Cadet Instructor at ROTEC, and a teacher at Grandin Court Elementary and Forest Park Elementary.
Said former Forest Park Principal Faye Wood of Thompson, “Kurrai is an extremely dedicated and exceptional educator that often goes beyond the call of duty to meet the varied needs of her students. She colors her work with excellence.”
When Markus Saunders was a fifth-grader, he says Mrs. Thompson was the teacher that had the biggest impact on him. “I admit that I wasn’t the easiest child to teach, but she never lost her cool with me. When I realized that she truly cared, I stopped acting like such a knucklehead and got my act together.”
Cyberbullying remains a nationwide problem on all school levels. Principal Thompson is committed to creating a “we” rather than a “me” culture. She explained, “We understand that meeting our students’ social-emotional needs contributes to their success, so we have built time into our instructional day to be responsive to those needs. The possibilities are endless for what we can achieve.”
Thompson has a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences from Virginia Tech and a Master of Science in Education Leadership from Radford University. She also has additional licenses and certifications from the University of Virginia and other institutions.
Multiple candidates were interviewed for the position, but Thompson’s teaching experience and administrative leadership, explained Roanoke City Public Schools, made her the ideal candidate for the position.
