News

Meet Our New Principal, Ms. Lyons!

We are excited to welcome Michelle Lyons as our new principal at Cornerstone Prep Denver!

Born and raised in the small town of Carbon Hill, Alabama, Lyons has now called Memphis home for over 20 years. In the summer of 2015, Lyons completed a one-year National Principals Academy fellowship through the Relay Graduate School of Education, which prepares principals to become instructional and cultural leaders. This training, along with her work as the founding assistant principal at Whitney Achievement Elementary School, has equipped her with the knowledge and experience needed to lead, guide, and support our staff, student and parents in making CPD a model school in Memphis and beyond.

“I absolutely love serving our urban scholars and their families. It feeds my soul to see our scholars and parents develop a belief in themselves and most importantly a pathway to a productive future.”

But Ms. Lyons knows that a strong staff in her school is the only way to get there. 

“Believe me, I can’t do it alone. Our teamwork is paramount to our success,” Lyons said when recently addressing her staff at CPD.

Lyons began her work as an educator in 1992 as a third grade teacher at a Title 1 school in Sylacauga, Alabama. The Sylacauga Jaycees recognized Lyons in 1996 as their Young Educator of the Year. From 1996-2002, she taught third grade at Cordova Elementary School in Memphis, where in 2000 she was awarded the Tennessee Council of Social Studies Teacher of the Year. Then, in the fall of 2002, she began to realize in a new way the impact she could have on the lives of students, their families, and a community. There began her 11-year tenure with KIPP in North Memphis which included her work as a 5^th, 6^th and 8^th grade math teacher, an instructional coach, director of teacher development, and chief academic officer. In 2009, Lyons won the KIPP Excellence in Teaching Award. 

Lyons describes how one of the things she loved most about her tenure with KIPP were the positive changes that came throughout the years.

“I witnessed our parents transform from bystanders to advocates and the community started to expect quality and results from our schools,” Lyons said.

With a zest for knowledge and a zest for life, Lyons has completed several college degrees over the years, including an associates of science in nursing, a BS and MS in education, as well as completing a +45 certification. Before joining the CPD staff, Lyons completed her fourth year at Whitney Achievement Elementary School.

“I have grown to love the Frayser community and feel confident that we, my new CPD team, can lay the foundation that propels our scholars, families, and community to expect college to be a norm for our Frayser children,” Lyons said.”

We are excited to have her leading the way at CPD! Welcome, Ms. Lyons!

Are you an educator who wants to join the CPD team? We still have two upper elementary teaching positions open! Click here to learn more about how to join our team!