New Secondary Associate Principals Announced

The Ames Community School District is excited to announce two new secondary associate principals in the district. Michelle Fuqua will serve as Associate Principal at Ames Middle School and Kenneth Damron will serve at Ames High School. 

Michelle Fuqua has deep roots in the Ames community having worked for the Ames District since 2004. Most recently, she was an Instructional Coach at Ames High School where she facilitated professional learning communities (PLCs), utilized data to drive building goals and decisions, and led equity-focused coaching. Prior to that, Ms. Fuqua worked in the area of special education where she coordinated and provided Tier 2 and 3 interventions and managed a therapeutic classroom environment for students with severe behavioral and emotional challenges. Her comprehensive understanding of PLCs, special education, multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS), and the Iowa Core make her an incredible asset for Ames Middle School. 

In her cover letter, Ms. Fuqua said, “every child deserves to be healthy, safe, engaged, supported, challenged, and valued, and I would like to continue to create a culture at AMS where every student feels as if they have not only an advocate, but a champion.” She earned her Masters of Arts in Special Education degree from the University of Iowa and more recently a Masters of Science in Education Administration from Iowa State University. 

Kenneth Damron arrives from the Salt Lake City, Utah area where he most recently served as an Assistant Principal at Bingham High School in the Jordan School District. In that position, he developed a positive-based intervention system to promote student learning and oversaw the evaluation of teachers through a formal observation cycle. Mr. Damron also has experience developing a building schedule and supporting professional learning communities. 

Mr. Damron noted that he is “passionate about helping each student and teacher achieve their best inside and outside of the classroom.” Prior to entering school administration, he taught 9th-grade English, coached football and track and field, and was a yearbook advisor. He earned his Masters of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy from the University of Utah.  

As a District, we look forward to the leadership that Ms. Fuqua and Mr. Damron will bring to the Ames Community School District and their respective schools.