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Cherry Creek Elevation Assistant Principal Michelle Chambers celebrated with surprise ceremony for CASE award
Cherry Creek Elevation Assistant Principal Dr. Michelle Chambers received some long overdue recognition from her colleagues, friends and family during a ceremony held at the campus on Feb. 24.
Chambers recently received the 2021 Colorado Outstanding Assistant Principal of the Year for Elementary Schools award from the Colorado Association of School Executives (CASE) and the Colorado Association of Elementary School Principals (CAESP). The honor recognizes Chambers’ work at Mission Viejo and Elevation, and it celebrates her “exceptional leadership that fosters empowerment, spirit and positivity within school buildings.”
Because of the safety measures in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chambers wasn’t able to attend a formal recognition ceremony for her award. Her most dedicated supporters wanted to remedy that oversight. They came together at Elevation to surprise her during a ceremony that included school and district administrators, teachers and Chambers’ husband and two children.
“Michelle has been so exceptional, and we are so happy to be able to honor her today,” Elevation Principal Kristy Hart said during the ceremony. “She has been a leader for all of us. She’s adept at working on a team, and at leading by example.”
CASE Executive Director Bret Miles was also on hand to formally offer Chambers her formal recognition.
“She has made authentic, meaningful connections in all of her roles in Cherry Creek Schools,” Miles said. “She’s brought school spirit to Elevation, and there’s never been a time when students and teachers need spirit more than they do now.”
For her part, Chambers was genuinely surprised by the ceremony, and by the presence of so many friends, colleagues and family members. The Elevation auditorium was decorated to match the event, with tables sporting daisies (Chambers’ favorite flower) and signs offering congratulations.
“This was a complete surprise,” Chambers said before offering credit to all those she’s worked with to provide excellence for every single student. “This is not about me; this is truly celebrating those I’ve had the honor to work with … This is possible because of them, and because of my incredibly supportive family.”
Chambers is currently assistant principal at Cherry Creek Elevation, where she heads the kindergarten program, the K-12 Gifted and Talented program and the K-5 online program. She came to the role at the outset of the 2020-21 school year, after serving as assistant principal at Mission Viejo Elementary School for two years.
Her tenure in the Cherry Creek School District has seen plenty of challenges, including a global pandemic that forced administrators, teachers and students to completely reinvent how they approach learning. For Chambers, who helped build a new online elementary program from the ground up in the summer of 2020, it’s been a period that’s only strengthened her core values as an educator and a mentor.
“No matter what we encounter as learners, educators, and educational leaders this year, it is essential for us to continue to seek new ways to inspire, empower and demonstrate vulnerability and courage,” Chambers said when she first received the award. “We must also listen to the needs of our community and respond through service by showing that during times of darkness, we can and will ‘be a light’ for our students, their families and each other.”
Specifically, the nomination cites Chambers commitment to her students both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. At Mission Viejo, Chambers helped steer the school’s Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBIS) Committee, a group that worked to unite parents and teachers and revitalize a sense of spirit and enthusiasm throughout the community. The committee worked to reignite school pride, introducing a new mascot and engaging community members in new ways.
In her role at Elevation, the district’s new online school, Chambers was at the forefront of helping the facility meet the considerable demands of the moment. As hundreds of families turned to a new, virtual model, Chambers successfully built a program that adequately met their needs. In building a new elementary program, she helped hire 500 staff members, organize curriculum training and coordinated the effort to get a comprehensive K-5 program functioning online.
Through it all, Chambers found a compass in a strong set of values that had roots in her upbringing, her family and her own educational journey.
“While receiving this recognition is truly an honor, the significance of receiving this award is greater than myself,” Chambers said. “This award celebrates the students, families and staff that I have had the privilege of serving, including those who find the courage to believe that overcoming adversity can lead to opportunities of service.”
-- Posted 3/2/21 at 10:30 AM