Ira B. Jones Elementary School Principal Ruafika Cobb has been named Western Region 2023 Principal of the Year.
Ms. Cobb will be one of a handful of school principals from across the state competing for the 2023 North Carolina Wells Fargo Principal of the Year title. The selected principal will serve as the North Carolina ambassador for the state’s approximately 2,500 principals.
Ms. Cobb heard the news in front of the whole school after returning from winter break. Her family, district leaders, Regional Education Facilitator for the NC Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) Amy Laughter, and the state’s current Principal of the Year, Dr. Patrick Greene, were on hand for the announcement.
As an educator with twenty-two years of experience, Mrs. Cobb began her career as a math and science teacher at Frisbie Middle School in Rialto, CA. She joined Asheville City Schools in 2005 and has been here ever since. She has been a teacher, math coach, assistant principal, and principal in the district, and has served at the elementary, middle, and high school levels for the past 17 years.
Mrs. Cobb began her Asheville City Schools tenure as an Algebra I teacher at Asheville Middle School. She took a leadership role during her tenure, ensuring equitable mathematics learning. As the Founder and Director of Asheville Middle School’s Algebra Academy, she built the program from the ground up. This program was designed for historically underserved students to master algebra, considered a critical “gatekeeper” subject because its mastery is necessary for students to advance in math, technology, and science, and is a valuable academic resource to college attendance.
Her work with the Algebra Academy has been recognized by UNC Asheville’s Multicultural Center and featured in the article “Project Targets Math Literacy.” Dr. Robert Moses, a key student leader in the Civil Rights Movement and President and…
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