Gale Zickefoose

Shadow Hills Elementary School
Independent School District of Boise City
Boise, Idaho
gale.zickefoose@boiseschools.org

Boasting an impressive 33 years of service to Boise area students and families, Gale Zickefoose will soon celebrate 25 years of principalship. Throughout his career, Zickefoose has left his mark on nine elementary schools as an administrator and a classroom teacher, most recently serving as principal of Shadow Hills Elementary School for eight years. At each school he has led, Zickefoose is proud to have implemented effective grassroots-developed character education programs that augment the traditional curriculum, which over time have become fully integrated into his schools’ PBIS efforts. Adept at process and change management, he has led multiple successful processes to update school mission, vision, purpose, and goals, the fruits of which have endured beyond his tenure at each school. Passionate about building a new generation of leaders in public education, Zickefoose embraces a transformational instructional leadership approach that emphasizes professional collaboration, rigorous progress monitoring, and continuous professional growth. In 2019, he worked with district leadership to establish a Principal Mentor Protege program, which offers structured guidance and professional development for new administrative leaders while continuing to encourage organic professional network-building. Zickefoose holds a Ph.D. in Education and an Ed.S. in Leadership from the University of Idaho, Boise Center, as well as a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education, a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction, and an Administrative Certificate from Northwest Nazarene University.