Photo by Erin Nelson.
Nicole Stokes smiles as she works with Olivia Holden on a Chromebook in Meredith McDonald’s first grade class at Deer Valley Elementary School. Stokes began her new role as principal at the school April 4.
Deer Valley Elementary School has had only one principal in its 21-year history — until now.
With the retirement of Wayne Richardson at the end of March, Assistant Principal Nicole Stokes has stepped up to take the reins of the school and said she is eager to continue the school’s record of excellence and push it forward as the new principal.
Stokes career in education spans 21 years, including 16 years at Deer Valley. She was born in Mobile and spent the first 17 years of her life in New Orleans, but her family relocated to Mobile in 1994.
When she graduated high school, she attended a junior college in Mobile and wasn’t sure what she wanted to do with her life, she said. She considered becoming a sign language interpreter, a physical therapist and a journalist, but it wasn’t until she spent time visiting and observing in an elementary school that she found her calling.
Watching those teachers fight with every fiber of their being to give their students the greatest experience they could helped her realize that was the passion for which she had been yearning, she said.
She went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Alabama A&M University and went back to work for the same principal that let her observe in her school.
She spent her first five years as a teacher working with first graders at Kate Shepherd Elementary in Mobile but moved to the Birmingham area in 2006. She taught second and third grade classes at Deer Valley for eight years, then spent five years as the math coach at Deer Valley before being named an assistant principal three years ago.
She was a Teacher of the Year at both Kate Shepherd Elementary and Deer Valley Elementary and went on to get her master’s degree in education leadership from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Richardson said he knew from the start that Stokes was special. All the principals in Hoover wanted her when she first arrived, but he was fortunate enough to get her, he said. He also saw the leadership potential in her and is thrilled she was named his replacement.
“She’s smarter than I am really, and she is incredibly accomplished,” Richardson said. “She was an amazing math coach and is extremely knowledgeable about curriculum. Plus, the continuity she brings to Deer Valley is critical. Not only does she know our history. I have every confidence that Deer Valley — its best days are in front of them with her at the helm, and the devotion she has built with this community and with these teachers, I think they’re going to take it to the next level. I really do. … I can’t imagine this school without Nicole.”
Stokes said being named principal is bittersweet. It’s bitter because Richardson has left, but it’s sweet because she’s excited to step in and continue leading at Deer Valley.
She said her title will be different, but she has the same desire to move Deer Valley forward and continue making it a fun place to learn and grow.
“This will always be the house that Wayne built,” she said of Deer Valley, but “the foundation he set for 21 years will be the foundation that will carry us forward 21 more years. … His spirit and energy will remain.”
Stokes said she has received a lot of support from the faculty and said the faculty, staff and community at Deer Valley are what has kept her there all these years.
She doesn’t plan a lot of immediate changes, she said. She wants to finish this year strong and take the summer to reassess, she said.
Her plan is to sit down with teachers, students and parents and ask them what they think Deer Valley has that has worked and that they love and look for ways to take it up a notch.
She sees no glaring challenges right now, she said. The school gained some breathing room in terms of space with rezoning and is thankfully returning to most of its pre-COVID-19 activities, she said.
The school also has met or exceeded district averages for academic achievement but is always looking for ways to grow and improve, she said.
