CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — Christie Ellis is retiring as principal of Manchester High School in Chesterfield County after spending her entire 31-year career at the school she once attended as a student. Ellis, who graduated from Manchester in 1987, never imagined she would one day lead the school.
After earning her degree from Duke University, Ellis taught preschool in North Carolina for two years before he returned home and walked into the then-principal’s office at Manchester.
"He was like, wait a minute, you have a couple years of experience. You went to Duke, you've got your masters. Just come back tomorrow and we'll have you sub until a position opens up. And so that's what I did," Ellis said.
For the next 13 years, she served as a teacher and debate coach before eventually becoming principal.
"There's nothing that beats that moment when there's a student who didn't think they could do something, and you convince them that they can, and you see them succeeding and their confidence just shining," Ellis said.
Her career spans 31 years of teaching and leadership at Manchester High School, where she has been known as a "Lancer for life."
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