Stanley Dale Eggleton, has been named Putnam County Schools' Administrator of the Year for his work as principal of Poca Middle School. Eggleton, who began his teaching career at Poca High School in 1970, has been an administrator at Poca Middle School since 1998 and has served as principal there since 2002. Before that, he taught science, biology, and anatomy & physiology in Poca and Hurricane area schools.

A graduate of Marshall University and the West Virginia College of Graduate Studies, Eggleton holds or has held memberships in the National Middle School Association, the West Virginia Principal's Association, the West Virginia Education Association, and the American Federation of Teachers.

As principal of Poca Middle School, Eggleton has led the school to become a high performing schools. He has facilitated the establishment of programs and practices, such as the monthly meetings to monitor student progress and classroom technology integration, to achieve these goals. Programs such as these, along with high expectations, time on task, and effective teaching strategies have been his focus, but he is quick to credit the school's success to the hard work of a staff who dedicate themselves to raising student achievement.

Eggleton believes that knowing his community and communicating with them effectively are also key to his and the school's success: "By becoming knowledgeable about the school, community, and culture of Poca Middle School and by identifying the strengths and weaknesses of these areas, I have established strategies and goals to address the weaknesses and maximize the strengths. A leader must foster positive home, school, and community relationships to provide effective communication and establish a climate that meets the needs of the students," he states.

While he regrets that his students and staff endure the challenges of providing a quality 21st Century education in an early 20th Century building, Eggleton is quick to cite high writing assessment scores and WESTEST scores as evidence of his school's success, and he proudly points out the naming of Poca Middle School as a West Virginia School of Excellence this year.

Eggleton believes that the commitment to the students, staff, and families of Poca Middle School to raising achievement and providing an outstanding middle school experience has paid off for Poca Middle School and, in turn, for him with the honor of being named Putnam County Administrator of the Year for 2009-2010.