Principal at new Lexington elementary school is a former UK basketball player

Jocelyn Mills has been named the new principal of Carter G. Woodson Preparatory Academy.

The school, Lexington’s next new specialized elementary, is expected to open in fall 2021, expanding the existing Carter G. Woodson Academy, an all-male middle and high school college preparatory program.

The new school would begin next fall with only kindergarten through second grades and 150 students. It would be temporarily housed in the former Johnson Elementary school building at East Sixth Street.

Mills is a Chicago educator with Kentucky connections. She is a former University of Kentucky women’s basketball player.

She most recently served as the principal of Chicago’s Barbara A. Sizemore Academy for students in grades K-8.

The Carter G. Woodson Preparatory Academy will feature a science, technology, engineering and math-focused curriculum, which will be taught through the lens of African-American history and culture, using culturally responsive teaching and learning strategies. After opening with 150 boys in kindergarten, first and second grades this August, it will expand each year until it is a K-5 school.

“Ms. Mills believes that ‘schools are not just part of a community, they are what transforms a community,’” Acting Fayette Superintendent Marlene Helm said. “Her enthusiasm and sense of urgency for serving students will be a very strong addition not only to our district, but especially to this particular program.”

Mills has more than 21 years of experience in the field of education, having served as a nationally board certified high school social studies teacher, a middle school principal, a high school principal and the program manager for the Kentucky Department of Education’s District of Innovation initiative.

“Ms. Mills brings a wealth of educational experiences with her, including more than six years as principal of an African-American centric school, which aligns with the lens by which the Carter G. Woodson Preparatory Academy is designed,” said Elementary School Chief Faith Thompson, who will oversee Carter G. Woodson Preparatory Academy. “She is definitely a learning leader, and a leader to watch and learn from.”

Mills holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Kentucky and a master’s degree in teaching from East Tennessee State University.

She completed the Educational Leadership Program at Western Kentucky University and received her Certificate in Urban School Leadership from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education.

This story was originally published April 10, 2021 at 12:42 AM.