HAMLET — Richmond County Schools should have a new superintendent in place next month.
The Richmond County Board of Education announced Tuesday evening that it has hired Dr. Joe Ferrell to take the helm.
“The board thoughtfully considered the community and staff input provided to it during the search process, including hundreds of online survey responses,” reads a press release. “The board then carefully reviewed applications from a diverse field of twenty-four excellent candidates from ten different states.
“Although many qualified candidates applied, the board felt that Dr. Ferrell’s experience, leadership, and dedication to students and staff would best serve RCS students, employees, and the community for years to come. The board is confident Dr. Ferrell will lead the school system to even higher achievement.”
According to a press release, Ferrell has been working in public education in North Carolina for 25 years, starting as a fifth-grade teacher in Roxboro before becoming an assistant principal in Person County Schools.
Ferrell then worked as an elementary and middle school principal in Guilford County for nearly a decade, followed by a five-year stint as principal of Williams High School in Burlington.
He then moved up the administrative ladder, serving as executive director of secondary education for the Burlington-Alamance system and took the reins as superintendent in Camden County in 2017.
While heading up Camden County Schools, Ferrell has “led initiatives that increased CTE programming and participation and facilitated the school system receiving a $50 million grant to build a replacement high school, as well as implementing a wide range of safety and security strategies to meet the district’s goal of overall safety and security in the school system,” the release states.
Ferrell obtained his bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Elon University, earned a master’s in school administration from N.C. State University and his doctorate in educational leadership from UNC-Greensboro.
“I am grateful and excited for the opportunity to serve the students, staff, and families of Richmond County Schools,” Ferrell said in a statement. “I appreciate the confidence the Board of Education has placed in me, and I am committed to doing my best to continue the great work already going on in our school system and always putting our children’s best interest first.”
Ferrell is expected to start the new job around Feb. 13.
Retired educator and administrator Dennis Quick has been serving as interim superintendent since the retirement of Dr. Jeff Maples on July 31, 2022.
