Former Chrisman teacher hired as new JH/HS Principal
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The 2022-2023 Chrisman Junior High/High School will officially be under new leadership. Nicole Cox, a former Chrisman Elementary School teacher was hired at last month’s school board meeting.
Cox grew up in Clay City, Indiana, a small town in southern Clay County. In 1999, she moved to Paris when she married her husband, Chris, who is a life long resident.
Nicole graduated from Indiana State University in 2002 with a degree in elementary education with middle school endorsements in English Language Arts and Social Sciences.
“In 2017, I graduated from Eastern Illinois University with Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership,” Cox told us.
In 2006, Nicole began teaching fourth grade at Chrisman Elementary. “I had met several people from the community when I moved to Edgar County and was excited to learn of the open position,” Cox said. “I thoroughly loved my time in the Chrisman School District.”
Into her first year of teaching at Chrisman, the district went through a series of budget cuts. Some of those involved letting teachers being reduced. “Dan Moore, the principal at the time, helped me apply in the Georgetown-Ridge Farm School District, where I taught fourth grade for seven years.”
Ridge Farm Elementary closed soon after, sending Cox to Pine Crest Elementary School. She then began teaching sixth grade English Language Arts at Mary Miller Junior High for four years. I
In the fall of 2018, she returned to Pine Crest as the Assistant Principal, a position that she’s held for four years.
Though she left the Chrisman District, Cox remained in touch with many of the people that she had met. After being told by a friend of a position coming available at the High School/Junior High, Nicole jumped at the chance to return. “I wanted to take the opportunity to come back to Chrisman,” Cox said. “After meeting with Mr. Acklin and the members of the interview committee, it felt like a great fit.”
Nicole’s interest in leadership, along with wanting to have an impact on improving education for students, was a driving force behind her decision to become a Principal.
The State of Illinois requires a Principal candidate to have taught for a minimum of two years before being admitted to an Educational Leadership program.
“I taught for ten years before going to Eastern Illinois for my Masters,” Nicole said. “I completed the Educational Leadership Masters program in the spring of 2017, and followed that with a three semester internship and an additional class to obtain the principal endorsement.”
Coming back to Chrisman has given Cox a sense of homecoming, making her look forward to working with the staff, students, families and the communities.
“I will bring education, hard work and willingness to do what I can to serve the district and community,” Cox said. “I have learned great things from the amazing staff and I want to do all I can to support their efforts to provide a top notch education for every student.”
