With thirteen years of experience as a principal and three years leading Julius Marks Elementary School, Lynn Poe believes she needs to be a positive activist to be an effective instructional leader. Her approach is summarized with the statement, “By cordially inviting children’s whole, real lives into the classroom, we strike a balance between activities that follow the child’s lead and ones that lead the child.” Her previous school, Donald E. Cline Elementary, was named a Blue Ribbon School in 2010, when Poe was also a finalist for Principal of the Year. Julius Marks prides itself on a guaranteed, viable curriculum for all students with a teacher focus on balancing research strategies and personal approaches with considered procedures for implementation. Poe’s supervisor describes her as someone with the ability to transfer vision into reality, such as reinstating science as a designated class at the request of parents after it had been eliminated by previous administration. Through a partnership with the University of Kentucky College of Education, teachers at Julius Marks provide students with experiential learning opportunities and authentic classroom guidance. Poe has served as Vice President of the Kentucky Association of Elementary School Principals and has been their regional representative since 2011. She holds a B.A. and Rank 1 from Morehead State, a M.A. from Georgetown College, and an Ed.S. from the University of Kentucky.