Carroll County Schools

Carroll County Schools is focused on keeping our campus communities safe and secure and is deploying a new anonymous tip resource monitored 24/7. If you have a safety or security concern, visit www.carrollcountyschools.com/WeTip to let us know. If you are on the move, text or call 844.770.2531.

We are working on other school safety upgrades this summer including enhanced security cameras, school resource officers and the addition of the SHIELD Lockdown System on two more campuses. Next month, school and district safety teams will join with local law enforcement agencies at our annual safety summit, an event we pioneered over a decade ago to give school staff and first responders access to specific training and resources and collaboration time. While students may be enjoying summer break, there is plenty of work happening to prepare for a great start and a wonderful school year!

Carroll County Schools celebrated Superintendent Scott Cowart's retirement with a celebration June 15 at the Carroll County Schools Performing Arts Center, a facility that was constructed during Mr. Cowart's 16 years as superintendent. The PAC is just one of many significant projects, enhancements and initiatives successfully implemented under his leadership.

Family, friends and community partners gathered for a reception provided by Good Neighbor before transitioning to a program including messages from Board of Education Chairman Kerry Miller, Assistant Superintendent of Support Services Glen Harding, retired Assistant Superintendent Dana Harman and Cowart's own grandson, Griffin Bass. Mr. Cowart and his wife, Cindy, were seated on stage during the hour of memories, tributes, presentations and more than a few funny stories.

Mr. Cowart is leaving office at the end of June and incoming Superintendent Dr. Jessica Ainsworth will begin July 1. Dr. Ainsworth has served as Associate Superintendent for the past two years. She and Mr. Cowart are working together to ensure a smooth transition.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by, wrote a note, brought a card or shook a hand to celebrate a remarkable career of service to the people of Carroll County. Mr. Cowart has pledged to remain, in his words, "a lifelong Advocate, Ambassador, and Ally for Carroll County Schools."

Congratulations and many thanks to Scott Cowart on an incredible career and a life devoted to positively changing lives!

The Carroll County Board of Education approved leadership appointments Monday that complete incoming Superintendent Dr. Jessica Ainsworth’s executive team and strengthen the district’s focus on communication, partnerships, and community engagement ahead of the 2026-27 school year.

During the board’s regular work session, Ainsworth recommended changes to create stronger alignment between strategic planning, community partnerships, customer service, and district internal and external communication. The changes are designed to support the district's long-term goals while enhancing engagement with students, families, employees, and community stakeholders..

“As we move into the new school year, leaders across the district are focusing on connections that build collaboration, elevate customer service, and strengthen partnerships,” Ainsworth said. “With this action, the board has approved structural changes that better align our staff around that strategy.”

Executive Director of Engagement and Partnerships

Charity Aaron has been named Executive Director of Engagement and Partnerships to focus on planning and executing the district’s strategic vision while continuing to support school leaders in sustaining a premier brand across all campuses. She will continue to lead the Carroll County Schools Performing Arts Center and the 24Strong Educational Foundation while serving on the Superintendent's Executive Cabinet.

“Today's school systems must do more than educate students,” Ainsworth said. “They must actively engage families, build community trust, create meaningful partnerships, and communicate with transparency. Elevating this work to the executive cabinet reflects its importance to our future.”

Aaron joined the Carroll County School System in 2017 as director of partnerships and communication, tasked with leading marketing efforts to establish the district as a premier school system. Throughout her tenure, Aaron has been instrumental in building a cohesive brand identity, expanding the district’s digital marketing footprint, and empowering local schools with effective campaign strategies. Her leadership has also guided numerous new facility branding projects, renovations, and the cultivation of robust business and community partnerships. Recognizing the district's growing needs, Aaron expanded her department in 2022 by securing Board support to add Communications Specialist Ben Chambers to the team.

In addition to her communication role, Aaron has served as the director of the Carroll County Schools Performing Arts Center since its inception – a post she will continue. Under her guidance, the facility has grown exponentially, hosting hundreds of school, district, and community events annually. The venue’s success has been recognized multiple times as the Times-Georgian’s Reader’s Choice Best Community Music Venue. The CCSPAC begins its 10th year of operations this fall.

A champion for student success, Aaron founded the 24Strong Educational Foundation in 2024. The 501(c)(3) organization supports STEM, literacy, and future-focused initiatives through student scholarships, teacher grants, and experiential field trips. With a five-member board of directors representing each school cluster, Aaron has led fundraising efforts that generated more than $1.6 million dollars in just two years.

Aaron is a 2002 graduate of the University of West Georgia where she earned her bachelor’s degree in mass communications and a minor in business management. She has more than 20 years of experience in leadership roles in the areas of sales, marketing, and communications. Prior to joining Carroll County Schools, she served as vice president of marketing for a regional bank. Aaron has served in a variety of volunteer roles in the community and is currently on the board of directors for Carroll County CASA as well as an ambassador for the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce. She resides in Carroll County with her husband, Mike, and their daughter.

“I am deeply honored to be part of the Carroll County Schools family and to help further our purpose of positively changing lives. My passion has always been serving others, and thanks to a dedicated team and strong leadership, we have extraordinary momentum as we prepare for the upcoming school year and beyond,” Aaron said. “What excites me the most about this new role is being more involved in vision casting and seeking innovative ways to ensure that our schools prioritize competitive and customized opportunities for students and unique ways for our community to connect with our 24STRONG family."

Director of Communication

Ben Chambers has been named Director of Communication, with responsibility for internal and external communication, media relations, and community engagement. Chambers will continue to manage the district’s digital content and serve as public information officer in coordination with the district’s safety and security team.

Chambers joined the district in 2022 as communication specialist with a charge to bring clarity and alignment to the district’s multi-platform communication strategy. Chambers led efforts to provide district-wide access to online graphic design tools with consistent brand standards, logos and templates for each school. Under his guidance, the district successfully migrated its web presence to an intuitive, user-centric design with modern, cloud-based content management.

Last year, Chambers was instrumental in creating and launching the district’s Performance Dashboard, an online resource to share specific academic, financial, operational and engagement data with internal and external stakeholders. The Dashboard combines the power of Qualtrics databases, the clarity of custom graphics and charts, and the content management system of the district website into a hybrid tool that shares results across multiple metrics, systems and platforms.

Chambers has nearly 25 years of experience locally in communication and public service. He previously served as Director of Public Relations and Information at West Georgia Technical College. He has past experience on the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce board of directors and the executive committee for Partners Advancing Student Success. Chambers holds a bachelor’s degree in Communication Arts from Shorter College, GEMA certification as a public information officer, and FEMA training on incident command and emergency management for higher education. He lives in Bowdon with his wife, Allison, and two daughters.

“I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish over the last four years, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to continue elevating the standard and increasing the capacity of people across our district to genuinely connect with students, parents, community members, and each other,” Chambers said. “I am thrilled to put my skills and experience to work sharing the stories of student success, professional excellence, and authentic connection that make Carroll County a leader, both far and near.”

Ainsworth said the district’s connection strategy emphasizes the importance of customer service and genuine care for people, be they students, parents, community members or other employees of the school system. She said her leadership team is united around these priorities as the next step in building a premier school system.

“Over four years ago, the district recognized we needed additional expertise to carry out our communication strategy with parents and families, community partners and our own faculty and staff,” Ainsworth said. “Charity and Ben have worked together since that time to enhance and refine our strategy while implementing a number of new tools, initiatives and events that have made a measurable difference.”

Ainsworth said this year’s perception survey results show six-point improvement in the number of parents who strongly agree that their child’s school effectively communicates with them.

“Every interaction with our district should reflect professionalism, responsiveness, and genuine care,” she said. “Strengthening communication and partnerships helps ensure families feel connected, informed, and valued.”

Director of Fine Arts

Neil Ruby, who joined the district office in 2022 after a storied career as Director of Bands at Central High School, has been named Director of Fine Arts, an elevation of his current post as Fine Arts Coordinator.

Ruby plays a critical role in recruiting, hiring, and supporting band directors, chorus directors, art teachers, and elementary music teachers across the district. He creates essential alignment through coordinated professional learning and opportunities for collaborative planning.

Ruby has over 30 years of experience as a music educator, including 24 at Central. During his tenure, CHS bands won a record 53 Grand Championships and earned superior ratings at every Georgia Music Educators event for 24 consecutive years.

Ruby is heavily involved in the Georgia Music Educators Association, where he served as President from 2023 until 2025 and continues to serve on the executive committee as immediate Past President. He holds a bachelor’s in music education from the University of West Georgia and a master’s in music education from Vandercook College of Music.

“It has been an honor and a blessing to advocate for and serve the fine arts in Carroll County over the last four years,” Ruby said. “I am excited to continue working alongside our incredible fine arts teachers and their remarkably talented students. Together, we will build on our successes and continue elevating the arts in Carroll County and beyond.”

Aaron, Chambers, and Ruby begin their new roles July 1. The district also announced two new assistant principals for next year. Current Roopville Elementary School Assistant Principal Rachel Herman will be moving to Bowdon Elementary as a second AP for the school. Current Roopville Elementary School Instructional Coach Megan Foster will be replacing Herman as Assistant Principal at Roopville.

Eight educators from Carroll County Schools attended the Georgia CEC Conference June 5 and 6 at the University of West Georgia. The conference's multiple sessions focused on building inclusive schools and communities where every learner belongs while offering special educators the opportunity to be inspired, connected and equipped with practical strategies for the classroom and community. Attending were Christi Lovelady, Villa Rica Elementary; Marti Webb, Villa Rica Middle; Ashley Ray, Villa Rica Elementary; Melodie Segrest, Villa Rica Elementary; Leanne Gammon, Temple High School; Rae Driver, Villa Rica Elementary; Katy Goolsby, system-wide.

Carroll County School Nutrition is feeding children again this summer with no-cost meals both on-campus and with mobile sites.
June 1 - June 25 and July 6 - July 16
(CLOSED THE WEEK OF JULY 4)
Monday thru Thursday from 7:30 a.m. - Noon
Breakfast and lunch available.
Meals for Friday can be picked up on Thursday.
Printable and screen-reader-friendly files available at https://www.carrollcountyschools.com/documents/parents/summer-resources/no-cost-summer-meals-available/23938059

The Carroll County Board of Education today named two new principals, filling vacancies that were created last month when Dr. Cynthia Beers and LaTeisha Drummond were elevated to district roles.

Principal of Temple Middle School

Dr. Sean Schinella is replacing Beers as principal of Temple Middle School. Beers will be serving the district as Director of Middle and High Schools beginning July 1.

Schinella is no stranger to Carroll County, beginning his teaching career at Temple Elementary School nearly 20 years ago while also coaching soccer, wrestling and football at Temple High School. He has served as a middle school assistant principal since 2019 in the Paulding County School System. His wife, Ashley, is a Carroll County teacher and their children are already part of Carroll County Schools.

“I am honored and excited to return to the Temple community where I began my career,” Schinella said. “I look forward to serving and working alongside our dedicated faculty, students and families as we continue working together to make Temple Middle School the very best it can be.”

Schinella holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of West Georgia, a master’s degree from Western Governors University and a specialist degree from Piedmont College. He earned his Doctor of Education degree from the University of Georgia in 2024.

Principal of Carroll County Schools College and Career Academy South

Stanley Clark replaces Drummond as the Principal of the College & Career Academy South Campus. Drummond will begin serving as the Director of Career, Technical and Agricultural Education for the district July 1.

Clarke taught agriculture for 15 years, was a Principal and Career Technical Education Director for 10 years, and served the Alabama State Department of Education/FFA Foundation for over 8 years as an Agriculture Improvement Specialist.

He came full circle back to the classroom six years ago as an agriculture education teacher at Central High School where his program has been recognized as the Area 1-Northwest Georgia Most Outstanding FFA Chapter of the Year for the last three years. All told, Clarke has been involved in career, technical and agricultural education for almost 40 years.

Clarke was the Carroll County School System Teacher of the Year for 2026 and has coached scores of students in FFA competitions during his career, including 21 Georgia state FFA champions in the past four years.

“I am excited and honored to continue the outstanding work of Ms. LaTeisha Drummond as she moves to the district level, and I look forward to working alongside her and administrators, faculty, staff, students, and the community to continue strengthening CTAE programs and creating opportunities for student success in Carroll County,” Clarke said. “I am committed to supporting teachers, building strong industry partnerships, and helping students develop the skills necessary for future careers and leadership.”

Clarke’s resume in leadership includes service as President of the Alabama Association of Career Technical Administrators, and winner of both the East Alabama Career Technical Association Outstanding CTE Administrator of the Year award and the Council for Leaders in Alabama School Leadership Award.

He holds a bachelor’s degree from Auburn University, graduate degrees from Alabama A&M and an administrative certificate from Samford University.

“Both Dr. Schinella and Mr. Clarke have impressive track records in the classroom and as administrators,” incoming Superintendent Dr. Jessica Ainsworth said. “I’m excited to have them leading these two campuses, and I’m confident they share our heart for positively changing lives and building first choice schools.”

Relive all the great moments from high school graduation last week! Stream videos of our commencement exercises at https://www.carrollcountyschools.com/graduation!

This Memorial Day we remember those brave men and women who gave their lives in defense of our great nation. May we never forget, and may we live each day in a way that honors their sacrifice.

Early Access for 2026-27! Simplify your back to school routine by completing your student's Annual Information Update now! Inside your Campus Parent app select "More" from the menu and then choose "Registration and Annual Update." Or navigate to https://campus.carrollcountyschools.com/campus/portal/parents/carrollcounty.jsp and log in to Infinite Campus. Need more help? Visit our Back to School page at https://www.carrollcountyschools.com/page/back-to-school.

Carroll County Schools announced valedictorians and salutatorians today from all five high schools and honored them with a recognition ceremony. Mount Zion High School alumnus and 2010 valedictorian Levi Williams provided the keynote address.

“Our valedictorians and salutatorians exhibit purposeful excellence,” Superintendent Scott Cowart said. “They are the best and brightest not only because of their own innate qualities, but because they set a goal, acted with intention, and did whatever it took to finish at the top of their class. They have proven their ability and their determination and we look forward to seeing all they achieve.”

Valedictorians
Olivia Ann Cook is this year’s valedictorian from Bowdon High School. Cook will be attending the University of West Georgia to major in nursing.

Maxwell Albert Kubik is this year’s valedictorian from Central High School. Kubik will be attending Emory University and plans to major in neuroscience.

Mount Zion Eagles - High School Carrollton GA. has two valedictorians. The first is Kimberly Yasmin Villalba. Villalba will be attending the University of Georgia and majoring in biology.

Jacey Hart Turner is a second valedictorian from Mount Zion High School. Turner will be attending the University of West Georgia and majoring in English.

Jack Alexander Jordan is this year’s valedictorian from Temple High School. Jordan will be attending the Georgia Institute of Technology to major in chemical and biomolecular engineering.

Chyenne Taylor Mayfield is this year’s valedictorian from Villa Rica High School. Mayfield will be attending Fordham University and majoring in business and economics (pre-law).

Salutatorians
Berkley John Perkins is this year’s salutatorian from Bowdon High School. Perkins will be attending Cumberland University and majoring in education.

Jacob William Brown is this year’s salutatorian from Central High School. Brown will be attending the University of Georgia and majoring in pre-law.

Zachary James Purvis is this year’s salutatorian from Mount Zion High School. Purvis will be attending Georgia Military College to major in pre-engineering.

Madeline Claire Miller is this year’s salutatorian from Temple High School this year. Miller will be attending the University of Georgia to major in biomedical and pharmaceutical science.

McKenna Lee Preston is this year’s salutatorian from Villa Rica High School. Preston will be attending the University of Georgia to study biology.

“We are committed to producing nationally competitive graduates who stand among the very best for academic achievement,” Associate Superintendent of School Performance Dr. Jessica Ainsworth said. “Our 2026 graduates have taken advantage of Advanced Placement courses, Dual Enrollment, world languages and numerous diploma distinctions and are prepared for global engagement. No matter their path, they are ready for what comes next.”

The Valedictorian and Salutatorian Recognition Breakfast was made possible by the support of District Sponsors: Carroll County Association of Educators, Carrollton Office Equipment, Georgia Power Northwest Credit Union, Holloway Floor and Ceiling, J&R Construction, Jill Pierce State Farm, MarshMcLennan Agency, Spa 3:16, Southern A&E, Southern Cleaning Services, and Scholastic Images.