Annette Winn Principal To Retire

At the end of June, Principal Mary Woodfin will be retiring, with Assistant Principal Melanie Manly set to take her place.

The Douglas County Board of Education selected Manly following an extensive interview process and announced her new position on April 18.

A former Eastside assistant principal herself, Woodfin will serve her last day June 22. Manly anticipates starting at Annette Winn beginning in July.

“I want to continue the work that Mrs. Woodfin has done there,” Manly said. “She’s gained a lot of respect. I want to make sure that we are doing the best possible job for the students.”

Manly and Woodfin agree that collaborating with parents, teachers and students is important for academic achievement at the school of 489 students and about 40 teachers.

“One thing I’m really proud of is that the academic achievement has steadily increased over the years,” Woodfin said. “I’m proud of the hard work that the teachers have done. We’ve been a Title 1 Distinguished School for seven years and have met AYP (Adequately Yearly Progress) for nine years.”

Manly, 48, and her husband, Jeff, are residents of Villa Rica and have two daughters and two grandchildren. Manly has worked for the Douglas County School System for 14 years. She has taught second, third and fourth grades at Mount Carmel and Mirror Lake elementary schools before serving as assistant principal at Eastside.

Woodfin said she first dreamt about being a teacher at age 9. Later, as an adult living in the Philippines, her mother once took her to a school where women volunteered.

“I went once, and I taught the children a song,” she said. “I’ve played school all of my life, but that was a defining moment.”

Woodfin, 52, and her husband, Mike, live in Villa Rica. Together, the couple has two children and six grandchildren. Woodfin will have retired with 31 years in education.

She began her teaching career in Paulding County and also instructed for six years in Florida. She taught kindergarten through third grade before becoming assistant principal at Eastside. She also was a teacher at Annette Winn before becoming principal.

Retiring will be hard.

“I’ve been at this school for 21 years total,” Woodfin said as she became teary-eyed. “I have taught here for 15 years, so to say goodbye to it is going to be hard.”

Manly said she wants to continue the warm, family atmosphere that Woodfin helped to build.

“Whatever it takes for the kids, that’s what we’re going to do,” she said. “We’re going to achieve and achieve well.”