The Super Shanay Snead
Ninth graders know her well and the rest of the school will come to love her. Mrs. Shanay Snead, the new 9th grade administrator and soon-to-be principal will undoubtedly be a great asset to Blake’s team.
Coming from a background of a Bachelor’s in Business education from University of Maryland Eastern Shore, with a Masters in Educational Leadership from The George Washington University, sheβs been interning here with Mr. Sinclair since the summer to prepare for her time as principal.
βIβm being evaluated on how I would function as a principal [during the internship]… I really closely shadow Mr. Sinclair to see how he makes decisions and how he communicates with the community.β Sheβll continue to be trained until Sinclair leaves next semester, then for two months with the support of another school’s principal, she will act as our school leader until Sinclair returns. During his leave this year, he will act as a supporting principal for other interns at another school.
Snead has also taken over another departed adminβs position, Ms. Koch, who left to work at (school). During Snead’s time as principal she will also be continuing her 9th grade administration responsibilities. βIβm not nervous [for it], you do the best you can and the rest works itself out,β she says.
To handle that much responsibility involves a strong sense of confidence. β[I] give myself grace. Oftentimes, we tend to be very hard on ourselves in the moment. All we can see is what we didnβt do right or how we didnβt live up to someone’s expectationsβ¦β she adds, βAs Iβve learned and as Iβve grown, you have to give yourself grace.β
She offers that advice to young students too, βYou’re gonna make mistakes, youβre gonna try new things, you may like it, you may not like it, but you have to learn that itβs all a part of the experience and helping you evolve into who youβre meant to be.β
Good advice isnβt the only way she wants to be involved in students’ lives, βmy main goal is to be intentional about meaningful relationshipsβ¦ where the need is for me, I want to be intentional about seeing how things function and where I could be the best support.β
Luckily for her, nothing surprised her about Blake. βHigh schools are pretty much the same.β she noted. Snead used to teach businessβ classes that she loved at Einstein. βThe pressure is getting to know people.β she states.
Business not being her only passion, she mentioned that she loves spending time with her family. βMost of my family is in Delaware, but also have some in New York, Virginia, Florida.β She continues, βI try to be intentional about spending time, I donβt like to be missing an action too much, so I go home when I can.β Not to mention her family’s German Sheprard Ace, whom she adores.
βI love to spend time at the beach, I love to shopβ¦ Iβm definitely a foodie so I like to try new foods!β she exclaims. Exercising is also up there hobby wise, specifically track and field. Although those seem like energy filled activities she also acknowledges that she likes to spend time resting, βSometimes just having a quiet space, watching a movie, taking a nap is what I enjoy.β (Her favorite movie being The Lion King.)
We look forward to seeing what Mrs. Snead brings to Blake and we canβt wait to see what she does as our Principal.