LA CROSSE, Wis., (April 19, 2021) – The Board of Education for the School District of La Crosse approved the hiring of Nicki Pope as the new principal of Northside Elementary/Coulee Montessori.
Pope has 10 years of administrative experience and comes to La Crosse from Lemonweir Elementary School in Tomah where she has served as the principal since 2012. Prior to her time at Lemonweir Elementary School, Pope was the Director of Special Education at the Cooperative Educational Service Agency (CESA) #4. She also has 6 years of experience as a special education teacher.
“Nicki brings a strong set of educational leadership skills to this new role,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Aaron Engel. “She is a powerful advocate for students, families, and staff and brings with her a unique level of year-round school experience, familiarity with Montessori education, and is a strong builder of community coalitions eager to hear from all voices. We couldn’t be more excited to welcome Nicki to the School District of La Crosse.”
Pope is a 2005 graduate of the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater with a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education. She earned her Master’s Degree in Special Education from the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse in 2009.
“My philosophy is to create a positive environment, which enables stakeholders of all types to play important roles in promoting both the academic and social, emotional growth of students so they can excel,” said Pope. “Our goal is to help young men and women build the skills to be successful in any avenue they choose and prepare them to be college, career, and community ready. We need to create an environment where students want to be successful because there are people at school who believe in their ability to achieve their goals and are invested in the students reaching them.”
Pope will succeed retiring principal Laura Huber and begin her new role on July 1.
###