ENOCHVILLE — Hugs and hellos are a part of Patty Williams’ morning routine. Standing outside Enochville Elementary School each morning, this principal greets each student who walks in the front door.
“The climate of this school is very important,”she said.
It is that attitude, colleagues and friends say, that earned this educator the distinction of 2002 Wachovia Principal of the Year.
Originally from the southern end of the county, Williams went to South Rowan High School, where her father, Jerry Pless, was an assistant principal, her basketball coach and a strong role model. Pless worked in the Rowan-Salisbury School system for 35 years.
Pless described his daughter as a “fine young lady” with a good temperament — a young lady who grew up to follow in her father’s footsteps. “She is real concerned when children have problems. She tries to help all she can.”
Williams said having dad at school was tough at times. “I was always an example. I never got away with anything,” she joked.
But she wouldn’t change a thing.
Williams said now when she makes decisions as an educator she thinks about what her father would have done. “He was a good role model.”
Williams went to Appalachian State University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in intermediate education. She also earned a master’s degree in educational administration at North Carolina A&T University.
Williams met her husband John — who is an assistant principal at West Rowan High School — while in college.
John Williams said back then she said she was studying education because she liked to help kids.
The two married after she graduated. Today they have a 19-year-old daughter named Candace who attends Catawba College.
Williams, who became principal of Enochville Elementary in 1994, started her career in education as a second-grade teacher assistant at China Grove Elementary School in 1977.
In 1978 she became a teacher at China Grove Middle/Junior High School. In August of 1991, Williams began her assistant principalship at China Grove Elementary.
Susie Lambert, eighth-grade English and math teacher at China Grove Middle, described her as dedicated to her profession. “She cared very much about her students. She was very student centered.”
As a principal she is still very student-centered, Lambert said. She is also supportive of her staff. “Many times when people go out of the classroom they forget what it’s like to be in the classroom. I think Patty never forgot what it was like to be in the classroom.”
Back in her own school days at South Rowan, Williams met life-long friend and colleague Wanda Watts. They taught together and coached basketball together.
Watts describes Williams as very interested in her students and very well-liked. “Students say she’s funny and very energetic,” she said.
Watts — who now teaches at South Rowan High School — said it is Williams’ genuine concern that has won her recognition. “She’ll go above and beyond the call of duty.”
Watts, a friend of more than 25 years, describes Williams as a fun-loving person. The two still shop together and join a group for beach trips twice a year.
“With Patty what you see is what you get,” Watts said. “She’s just a true genuine person ... You just couldn’t have a better friend than Patty.”
Williams’ co-workers describe her as a pleasure to work for, approachable and very good with the children.
“She loves the children and interacts with them beautifully,” said Willie Mae Broadway, a secretary at Enochville Elementary for 19 years.
Assistant Principal Barry Haywood said one of Williams’ strengths is that she works to make learning fun. In the 212 years Haywood has been at the school, Williams has gotten him in a dunking booth and a gorilla suit.
He said she is also always there to support her staff. “She pretty much has an open-door policy.”
According to Lambert, Williams has high expectations for teachers and students. Teachers think she’s fair because she is “willing to work alongside of her teachers, not just expect them to do it.”
Broadway agreed that Williams’ expectations are high, but said that is what has made Enochville Elementary achieve the many goals it has earned.
Under the state ABC accountability program, Enochville has held an exemplary ranking for the past five years and distinguished the last two.
“I would put this staff up against anybody. I don’t have a weak link on this staff,” Williams said. “That’s the one thing I say about this faculty is they are a team.”
The school has also received a Cannon Foundation grant for $50,000 that bought 25 computers.
Beyond the school’s achievements, people just want to rave about Williams.
“She has a heart for children, she’s a great leader, she’s a hard worker, she has high expectations and works to achieve those goals,” Lambert said. “She likes to empower people to do their best.”
John Williams said his wife is a good educator because she is so caring. She has reached out to many underprivileged children at her school, he said, and often uses her own money to get them food and clothing. “She always places other people before she places herself.”
He described her as “very personable” and a “very caring person.” He thinks she was selected as principal of the year because of what her school has done. She has brought together a strong faculty.
When her staff heard that Williams received the award, their reaction was, “It’s about time,” Broadway said.
Williams will now move on to compete with other local award recipients from the Southwest Region of the state. One principal will be selected as the 2002 Wachovia Principal of the Year among six regional winners.
Contact Jillian McCartney at 704-797-4253 or jmccartney@salisburypost.com
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