Campbell: Langston principal ‘dream job’
Zondria Campbell, the new principal of Langston Elementary Leadership Academy, said she feels it is a “humbling opportunity to make a difference in this community.”
“It’s a dream job for me. I’ve always wanted to be a principal,” she said. “So, although I’m a little nervous, I am extremely excited and blessed to have this opportunity.”
Campbell said she feels she was selected for the position because of her passion for success, noting
she is a hard worker and tries to go above and beyond to give the students the best opportunity.
“Anything that I can do to ensure academic success, I will do. So, I really believe it’s my work ethic that brought me to this place,” she said.
Campbell said her goal is to build leaders in all capacities of life. Whether they’re going to college or starting a career, she said she wants to give students the skills they need to be a leader in their own lives and in the community.
“Not only academics but emotional support, social surroundings, just giving them a great atmosphere to be in each and every day to build them up to prepare them for life,” she said.
“That’s what I see being a principal as, having the opportunity to serve students, teachers, parents, and the community,” she said.
“We are the cornerstone of our neighborhood. So being able to lead the cornerstone, it’s everything to me. I love my job. I love Langston,” Campbell said.
She said that since she moved to Hot Springs a few years ago, she knew she wanted to be in the area.
Campbell said she was inspired to go into education when she was a substitute teacher while she was in college, and she loved it. She always wondered what it would be like to have her own classroom, she said.
She started off teaching second grade and then moved up to fourth where she saw a lot of social and emotional needs outside of the classroom she wanted to help students with, such as clothes and food.
Campbell said she went back to school to get her master’s degree to become a counselor which she did for six to eight years at the elementary, middle or high school level.
“Through that process of being a counselor, I saw how important it is to have a good principal at the school. That is the difference maker in great schools is having a great principal. So that was my drive to become a principal,” she said.
Campbell said each step that she has taken, she gets to see the stage differently, and it has inspired her to continue her education.
Another reason she was inspired to go into education was that she wanted to be the first member of her family to go to college, she said.
“I wanted to be a college graduate. That was my big goal to go to college, and then I wanted to finish college. So, I think that was my determination in the beginning and going to college and going into education. I wanted to make a difference,” Campbell said.
Campbell graduated from Jacksonville High School in 2002. She received her bachelor’s degree in early childhood development from the University of Arkansas in Little Rock in 2007, and received her master’s degree in school counseling in 2010. In 2017, she received her specialist degree in education specialist in administration.
Campbell said she remembers when she was in college, and a professor told her “one college degree in a family can bring a whole family out of poverty.” She said she wants to instill that in the Langston leaders, which is what they call the students, that they can go to college, and it can provide them with so many opportunities.
“You don’t have to be the best athlete, the best singer, or the things you see on TV. Just going to college and getting a college degree can open up so many doors in so many different fields. I’ve been able to meet many different people and travel the world because of my education,” she said.
“So, I want to instill a sense of how important education is in all of our students. That is what’s going to change our world is the more educated people we have in society. It’s going to make this world a better place,” Campbell said.
“We are confident that this new team will bring passionate, professional, student-centered leadership at Langston Elementary Leadership Academy,” Superintendent Stephanie Nehus said.
“We look forward to seeing how they will grow and continue the rich history rooted in education at our Langston,” she said.