By MEALAND RAGLAND-HUDGINS
Rutherford County Schools
May 7, 2024
Rutherford County Schools Director Dr. James “Jimmy” Sullivan has appointed Nicole Stirbens as principal of Daniel-McKee Alternative School.
Currently the school’s assistant principal, Stirbens succeeds Dr. Diana Brown, who plans to retire at the end of the current school year.
“She has been an administrator in both Rutherford and Sumner County and has been successful as a classroom teacher, exploratory teacher, assistant principal, and advocate for alternative education,” Sullivan said of Stirbens. “I look forward to the positive impact she will make in working with some of our most at-risk students in this new leadership role.”
Now in her 24th year as an educator, Stirbens joined the district at the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year to be closer to family. Prior to teaching at Rock Springs Middle, she was an assistant principal at Hawkins Middle School in Sumner County.
Stirbens became Daniel-McKee’s assistant principal in the fall of 2020.
“Dr. Brown and I have worked together to create a positive culture. I want to continue to build on that,” Stirbens said. “Making sure we have good relationships with our students and parents and our students’ home schools is at the foundation of everything we do. I want to make sure we continue to provide support to every child to reach their potential.”
Daniel-McKee is one of two alternative schools in the district serving students in grades 6-12 needing behavior interventions before returning to their zoned schools. Daniel-McKee has capacity for about 100 students at a given time.
Stirbens describes alternative school students as “good students that made a bad decision or need help managing their behavior.
“We have a unique opportunity here, because of our size, to help them make better choices. We have kids who are struggling academically and while they’re with us, their grades go up. When we send students back to their home school, we want them to go back into the classroom and not have missed a beat,” she said.
Stirbens holds a bachelor’s degree in Elementary and Special Education from Youngstown State University, a Master of Education in Administration and Supervision from Middle Tennessee State University and a Specialist in Education degree in Curriculum and Supervision from Union University.