District Names New Principals, Principal Supervisor

Guilford County, N.C. – Guilford County Schools (GCS) has announced administrative changes that will take effect beginning with the upcoming school year.  

Dr. Johnita Readus will become principal supervisor in Zone 4. Readus has been principal at Bluford STEM Academy since 2019 and was the district’s Principal of the Year in 2023-24. She also spent five years as a principal at Sumner Elementary and actively supports new principals in her school zone as a mentor and coach. Readus holds a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Winston-Salem State University, a master’s degree in elementary education from Fayetteville State University, a master’s degree in school administration from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical (N.C. A&T) State University and a doctoral degree in educational leadership from High Point University.  

Ivolyn Bonaparte will become principal at Bluford STEM Academy. Bonaparte currently serves as assistant principal at Pearce Elementary, where she is responsible for schedule design, professional learning, home-school communication and teacher support and supervision. She holds a teaching certificate from Shortwood Teachers’ College in Kingston, Jamaica, a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from the University of Phoenix, and a master’s degree in educational leadership and cultural foundations from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG).  

Paul Travers will become principal at Southern Middle. Travers has led Washington Elementary as principal since 2018 and was GCS Principal of the Year in 2022-23. He holds a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Greensboro College and a master’s degree in school administration from N.C. A&T State University.  

Stephanie Adams will become principal at Washington Elementary. Adams currently serves as a third-grade teacher at Lindley Elementary and was the founding school leader at KIPP Infinity Elementary in New York, N.Y., a role she held for six years. She also spent several years coaching principals in a consultant role. She has a bachelor’s degree in history and public policy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a master’s degree in educational policy and management from Harvard University. 

Daniel Tilley will become principal at Gibsonville Elementary. Tilley is an assistant principal at Millis Road Elementary, where he launched the Millis Men mentoring initiative, revamped safety procedures and coordinated tutoring efforts. He was a finalist for GCS Assistant Principal of the Year in 2024. Tilley has a bachelor’s degree in special education from Greensboro College and a master’s degree in school administration from UNCG.  

Dr. Chelsea Smith will become principal at Ferndale Middle. Smith has been serving in a research analyst role since 2021 and was principal at Bessemer Elementary from 2018 to 2021. Under her leadership at Bessemer Elementary, the school met or exceeded growth and showed an increase in end-of-grade composite scores of 3.4 percentage points. Smith holds a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from N.C. A&T State University, a master’s degree in education from Walden University, a master’s degree and a doctoral degree in educational leadership and cultural foundations from UNCG.  

Howard Stimpson will become interim principal at Kearns Academy. Stimpson has been a principal with Guilford County Schools since 2014 and currently serves as principal at Penn-Griffin School for the Arts. He holds a bachelor’s degree in history and secondary social studies and a master’s degree in school administration from UNCG.  

Abu Zaeem will become principal at Penn-Griffin School for the Arts. Zaeem is the current principal at Shadybrook Elementary and also served as principal at Doris Henderson Newcomers School. He holds a bachelor’s degree in math and business from High Point University, a teaching certificate from UNCG, and a master’s degree in school administration from High Point University.  

Alexa Veach will become principal at Shadybrook Elementary. Veach serves as assistant principal at Sternberger Elementary and is the current GCS Assistant Principal of the Year. She has also worked as an assistant principal at Western Middle and Ferndale Middle. Under her leadership, through revisions to instructional planning and collaboration at Sternberger, the school received an A school performance grade for the first time in school history. Veach holds a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Elon University and a master’s degree in school administration from Appalachian State University.  

Dr. Jonathan Brooks will become principal at Hairston Middle. Brooks is the current principal at Bessemer Elementary and the reigning GCS Principal of the Year. He holds a bachelor’s degree in education and a master’s degree in school administration from N.C. A&T State University, and a doctoral degree in educational leadership from Gardner-Webb University.  

Dr. Tyron McMillon will become principal at Bessemer Elementary. Since 2023, McMillon has been the assistant principal at Northern Elementary, where he focused on schoolwide professional development and instructional leadership. McMillon holds a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from the University of South Carolina at Beaufort, a master’s degree in educational administration from the University of South Carolina at Columbia and a doctoral degree in education from Liberty University.  

All changes will take effect July 1, 2025.