In Brief: Alumnus Michael Schooler honored as National Distinguished Principal

By Ryan Thornton
University News Service
September 21, 2015

Texas State University alumnus Michael Schooler has been named a National Distinguished Principal for 2015, an award commending elementary and middle-level principals for their schools’ high standards of instruction, student achievement, character and climate.

Schooler is one of two principals being recognized by the National Association of Elementary School Principals for educational work overseas. This is Schooler's third year as elementary principal at the International Community School of Addis Ababa (ICSA) in Ethiopia, where he works to create a better education for the 481 enrolled elementary students.

After his undergraduate work at San Angelo State University, Schooler earned his Master in Educational Administration degree at Texas State while working in San Marcos ISD as a special education teacher. He has 19 years of experience as an elementary principal working in several American schools in Colorado and one in Texas.

At ICSA, Schooler works to obtain funding to accommodate special needs students and to create programs specific to students’ individual learning needs. While doing so, he also works to build awareness and knowledge about special needs students in Ethiopia outside of his school, where such needs are not well understood. He is also a proponent of implementing creativity in the classroom among teachers and students alike. This shift toward an emphasis on creativity has positively affected both student and teacher performance while also creating a more interesting learning environment at ICSA.

Schooler’s success at ICSA will be celebrated October 16-17 with the other 2015 National Distinguished Principals at the Capital Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C.