Clarke County School District Interim Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Scott today announced the appointment of several school- and district-level leaders, following approval from the Clarke County Board of Education during its meeting on Thursday, May 14.
Tamara Goforth has been appointed to be the next principal of Winterville Elementary School and will replace outgoing principal Dr. Carletha Pearson, who has accepted a principal position in another school District.
Ms. Goforth has 32 years of experience in public education and has spent this school year as a supplemental reading teacher at Burney-Harris-Lyons Middle School. Before joining CCSD, she worked two years in Oconee County, first as the district’s Director of Student Services and then principal of High Shoals Elementary. The bulk of her education career has come for two school systems in North Carolina, where she started in 1994 as a third- and fourth-grade classroom teacher, then moved into school and district administration. From 2010-2015, she was principal of Boiling Springs Elementary School in Cleveland County, North Carolina, and then served eight years as Executive Director of Elementary Education & Title I Services.
Ms. Goforth holds a Master of Education degree from Georgia State University and a Master of School Administration from Gardner-Webb University. She earned a bachelor’s degrees in Psychology and Religion/Philosophy from Presbyterian College.
“I am deeply honored and incredibly excited to be given the opportunity to be the principal of Winterville Elementary School,” said Ms. Goforth. “I look forward to partnering with a dedicated staff, supportive families, and brilliant students to continue building a culture of excellence and belonging.”
Associate, Assistant Principal Appointments
The board also approved on Thursday a slate of associate/assistant principal hirings.
Coile Middle School Assistant Principal Stephanie McKee has been promoted to become an Associate Principal at Cedar Shoals High School. Ms. McKee has been an AP at Coile since 2020 and was a math teacher and instructional coach at the school prior to holding that role. She also previously taught math at Clarke Middle School and has been with CCSD since 2013. Her career in education spans more than 20 years, beginning in 2005 as a middle school math teacher in Clayton County. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Middle Grades Education from Clayton State University and a master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from Valdosta State University. The Coile AP position she is vacating will be filled at a later date.
Dr. Mollie Schubach has been appointed as Assistant Principal at Whit Davis Elementary School, a position she has held on an interim basis since the start of the current school year. Previously, Dr. Schubach spent eight years at Clarke Middle School, first as an English language arts teacher and then as an instructional coach from 2021 - 2025. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Education, a master’s in Middle Grades Education, and her doctorate in Educational Leadership, all from the University of Georgia.
Desylin Culliver will become the new Assistant Principal at Howard B. Stroud Elementary School, replacing outgoing AP Donyell Harris, who accepted a principal position in another school district. Ms. Culliver brings more than 25 years of education experience to Stroud. She joined CCSD in 2010 and taught at Whit Davis, Gaines, and Cleveland Road elementary schools. Since 2018, she has been the district’s lead Math Curriculum Coordinator. Ms. Culliver holds a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Oral Roberts University and a master’s in Educational Leadership from Southern Nazarene University.
Ginger Lehmann has been appointed as an Assistant Principal at Clarke Middle School and will be transferring from Clarke Central High School, where she started in 2010 as an English teacher and became an instructional coach in 2019. Ms. Lehmann’s career spans 32 years. Prior to her time with CCSD, she taught high school English in the metro Atlanta area. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Secondary English Education from Bryan College and a master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from Georgia Southern University. Ms. Lehmann will replace Dr. Kristina Lerch-Batson, who will be transferring to Barrow Elementary School as Assistant Principal.
Executive Director of Exceptional Programs
Finally, the board approved the promotion of Cortina Harris to district Executive Director of Exceptional Programs, a role in which she will oversee special education as well as gifted content and English to speakers of other languages (ESOL) programming. She will replace outgoing Executive Director Jacinta Henry, who is retiring at the end of the school year.
Ms. Harris has been with CCSD since 2023 and has nearly 30 years of experience in education. She began her career as a special education teacher in Greensboro, North Carolina. She taught in SPED classrooms for 13 years before moving into school administration in Gwinnett County. Prior to joining CCSD, she was principal of Alcova Elementary School in Dacula from 2019 - 2022.
Ms. Harris holds a bachelor’s degree in Special Education from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and a master’s in Educational Curriculum and Instruction from Central Michigan University.