Carol L. Leveillee

Frederick Douglass Elementary School
Seaford School District
Seaford, Delaware
carol.leveillee@seaford.k12.de.us

When Carol Leveillee became principal of Frederick Douglass Elementary School nine years ago, the school was among the lowest-performing in Delaware and at risk of state takeover. Leveillee acted swiftly and strategically, turning her immediate focus to transforming the school’s culture. Today, suspensions have decreased dramatically, and Frederick Douglass is a place where all community members take responsibility for ensuring that “student achievement and well-being come first.” Students now have robust resources for positive social, emotional, and academic development, supported by a comprehensive PBIS program and an in-house Reflection Suite, which provides proactive and reactive tools and services, with spaces designed to support creativity, focus, play, and self-regulation. Frederick Douglass students are also empowered and engaged community members, serving as ambassadors, peer mediators, and safety patrols, roles that build their confidence and investment in the school community. Building on the groundwork of this cultural transformation, Leveillee set out to transform math instruction, leading the school’s transition from a passive workbook model to a hands-on curriculum that leverages a variety of teaching approaches. Thanks to these efforts, and despite the challenges of high poverty and a variety of special education and language needs in the student population, Frederick Douglass became a National Blue Ribbon School and National Distinguished ESEA School in 2020. Leveillee holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Frostburg State College and the University of Maryland, respectively. She is also a two-time NAESP National Distinguished Principal, having first received the award in 2008 as the honoree from Maryland.