2015 Cohort
Kenrick Alston, Ed.D.
Kendrick Alston currently serves as an Assistant Principal of Allen Middle School located in Greensboro, NC, a position that he has held since July 2020. Dr. Alston is a proud graduate of Fayetteville State University and NC State University. During his graduate studies at NC State University, Dr. Alston earned his Doctor of Education degree in Educational Administration and Supervision and was selected for the David L. Clark National Graduate Student Research Seminar in K-12 Educational Administration and Policy recipient for NC State University. Dr. Alston has had the honor and privilege of serving as a teacher, Assistant Principal, and Principal. Dr. Alston lives by the belief that all students have the potential to excel and as educators, it is our responsibility to spark and foster a genuine love for learning. Dr. Alston successfully graduated in Fall 2018. Dr. Alston can be reached at kralsto4@ncsu.edu.
Mark Barfield
Mark earned a Bachelor of Arts in English at Elizabeth City State University in Elizabeth City, NC. He received honors for outstanding class of the month of the district and building level teacher of the year. His internship placement was at Northampton High School. He was Assistant Principal at Northampton High School in the 2012-2013 school year and Principal at Everetts Elementary School from 2013-2014. Mark was the Principal at Northwest Halifax High School, now called Northwest Collegiate and Technical Academy, from 2014 to 2018. He is now serving as the Director of Student Support Services for Northampton County. Mark can be reached at mabarfie@ncsu.edu.
Tyrana Banks Battle, Ed.D.
Tyrana Banks Battle earned her undergraduate Bachelor of Arts degree from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She earned her Master of School Administration (M.S.A.) degree from East Carolina University, an Educational Specialist Advanced Degree from East Carolina University and Doctor of Education Degree from North Carolina State University. Her areas of Licensure include: Middle Grades Education (6-9), Curriculum Instructional Specialist, Principal (K-12), and Superintendent. Dr. Banks Battle has served as a North Carolina representative for the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) in Washington, D.C. She has also served as a state representative for the Assessing Special Education Students (ASES) Committee in Washington, D.C. She was recognized by the National Association of Federal Educators with a Statewide Leadership Award for being a mentor in the federal programs arena and was honored with the Lifetime Membership Award in 2021. Dr. Banks Battle serves as a transformational leader in the northeastern North Carolina where she is the proud Assistant Superintendent of Halifax County Schools. Her employment history includes serving as the Northeast Regional Accountability Coordinator for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction Division of Accountability Services. She has also served as a testing specialist, teacher, mentor, coach, School Executive trainer, professional development coordinator, event planner, principal mentor, and an entrepreneur for a small catering company. She is married to Chef William G. Battle and is the mother of two beautiful daughters, Zaniya and Zamiya Battle. Dr. Banks Battle is the daughter of Ben and Anna Byrd of Enfield, North Carolina. Dr. She successfully completed the program in Fall 2018. She can be reached at battlet@halifax.k12.nc.us.
Lisa Bowen, Ed.D.
Dr. Bowen successfully completed the program in Spring 2023.
Mary Ann Earp, Ed.D.
Dr. Earp successfully completed the program in Spring 2022.
Mona Gilliam
Dana Jernigan, Ed.D.
Dana Jernigan is a 3-time NCSU graduate earning her Bachelor of English, Master of School Administration, and Doctor of Education degrees all from NC State University. Dr. Jernigan began her teaching career in 2007 at South Johnston High School where she became an Assistant Principal in 2013. She served as the Director of Professional Learning and the Executive Director of Secondary Education prior to becoming a principal. Her school is currently partnered with Marzano Academies where she states, “We have the opportunity to reflect on our beliefs and behaviors and how those manifest in our instructional strategies, processes, and school policies. This partnership will allow us to transform our school culture and equip our teachers with the tools and resources to plan for individual students needs.” Dr. Jernigan currently serves as the Principal of Benson Middle School in Johnston County Public Schools. She successfully completed the program in Spring 2020. Dr. Jernigan can be reached at danajernigan@johnston.k12.nc.us
Brad Jones, Ed.D.
Dr. Jones successfully completed the program in Fall 2015.
Masa Kinsey-Shipp, Ed.D.
Masa Kinsey-Shipp is an award-winning educator from Fayetteville, North Carolina. She is a proud wife and mother of two. Dr. Kinsey-Shipp has served as the Teacher of the Year in several educational settings: for W.G. Pearson Elementary (Durham Public School, 2000), Glenn Elementary (Durham Public Schools, 2006), and Spring Lake Middle (Cumberland County Schools, 2007). Dr. Kinsey-Shipp has diligently served as a middle school assistant principal, elementary principal, middle school principal, and now as the IPG Coordinator with the NC Innovative School District at Southside-Ashpole Elementary School. Her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education and master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction were obtained from North Carolina Central University. She earned an Add-on School Administrator’s License from The University of North Carolina at Pembroke, an Educational Specialist degree from N.C. State University. She has successfully completed the Distinguished Leaders in Practice and the BB&T Leadership Programs. Dr. Kinsey-Shipp is a 2017-2018 Wilcox-Hodnett Doctoral Fellow, and is succesffully completed her doctoral degree at North Carolina State University in Fall 2021. She can be reached at mkkinse2@ncsu.edu.
Lauren Lampron, Ed.D.
After graduating from West Chester University with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, Dr. Lampron joined the Eastern North Carolina Corps of Teach for America. She earned her teaching credentials through the alternative licensure program at East Carolina University. She then earned a Master of School Administration degree at NC State University as a Northeast Leadership Academy Fellow. Her educational background includes teaching 7th and 8th grade English and Social Studies, obtaining high school experience through a year-long principal internship, and being a middle school and high school administrator. She is a Standards Institute Leadership Facilitator through UnboundEd, serves as a principal panelist on the #PrincipalProject, is a member of the ENC Teach for America Network Steering Committee, and is a Principal Advisory Board Member for Schools That Lead. Sharing her passion for education reform with her husband; the couple resides in Edgecombe County, NC, where they are both administrators. Dr. Lampron earned her Doctor of Education degree in Educational Administration and Supervision in Fall 2019. Dr. Lampron currently serves as the principal of SouthWest Edgecombe High School in Pinetops, NC. Lauren can be reached at llampron@ecps.us.
Phillip Lampron
Mark Long
Mark earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Chowan University. Mark worked as an at-risk teacher under the grant program “Ameri-I-Can” at Conway Middle School and in Jones, Greene, Hertford and Bertie counties. He taught social studies and life skills to at-risk students at Northampton County Alternative School. He has also taught social studies and freshman success at Northampton East High School. His NELA administrative internship was at Hertford County High School in Ahoskie, NC. He was Assistant Principal of Northampton County High School from 2012 to 2014 and the Director of Alternative Programs at the Northampton Alternative Learning Program from 2014 to 2015. In the 2015-2016 school year Mark served as Assistant Principal at Conway Middle School. He currently serves as Director of Special Programs and School Safety in Northampton County. Mark can be reached at melong3@ncsu.edu.
Teicher Patterson
Teicher earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from North Carolina Central University. He worked for the North Carolina Teacher Academy providing Professional Development for Teachers across the state. He then completed an administrative internship at William R. Davie Middle School. Teicher was an assistant principal at Everetts Elementary School during the 2013 to 2014 school year. He served as Principal at Enfield Middle School from 2014 to 2020. Teicher passed away in July of 2020.
Jacqueline Perry-Higgs, Ed.D.
Jacqueline Perry-Higgs has 24 years of educational experience that include the following roles: a teacher, mentor, instructional coach, administrator, curriculum specialist, AIG coordinator and Director of Curriculum and Instruction. Dr. Perry-Higgs earned her elementary education degree from North Carolina Central University. She earned two Master’s degrees: curriculum and instruction (NCSU) and educational leadership (ECU). During her first two years of the doctoral program she was chosen as a Jackson Scholar. She is also a recipient of the Wilcox-Hodnett Fellowship. She has a published article in the Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership (Feb, 2019). Fall of 2020, she was one of the recipients of the Dissertation Research Continuity Grant. Dr. Perry-Higgs defended her dissertation in the summer of 2021. She can be reached at jjperry2@ncsu.edu.
Kimberly Scott
Kimberly earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education and Social Science from Elizabeth City State University. She has taught first grade through fourth grades. She was awarded Teacher of the Year and Master Teacher of the Year at Rick Square-Creecy Elementary School. She completed an administrative internship at Bearfield Primary School. She earned a Master of School Administration in 2012 through the NELA program and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Educational Leadership at NC State. Kimberly was Assistant principal at Ahoskie Elementary School from 2012 to 2016 in Hertford County. She is currently serving as Director of Title I/Curriculum & Instruction for Warren County Schools. Kimberly can be reached at krscott4@ncsu.edu.