Samuel L. Karns

Todd Elementary School
School District of Beloit
Beloit, Wisconsin
skarns@wwusd.org

In his three years as principal of Todd Elementary School, Samuel Karns has helped transform school culture, restore academic achievement, and expand equitable access to health and wellness. At the start of his tenure, Todd Elementary was rated a one-star school for “failing to meet expectations.” Just three years later, the school has progressed to three-star status, exhibiting year-over-year growth in reading and math. To get there, Karns assembled a cross-disciplinary leadership team to synergize and clarify campus improvement goals, reorienting the school’s culture to embrace collective ownership of school improvement. By leading 100-day improvement cycles emphasizing inquiry, planning, action, monitoring, and reflection, Karns has supported staff in advancing consistent, data-based strategies while invigorating professional collaboration and shared leadership. Karns has also reached beyond the school to eliminate barriers to learning and advance whole-child initiatives at Todd. Under his leadership, the school’s PTO relaunched as “E3”–Engage, Educate, Empower–generating a variety of new initiatives to support parents and students, including a popular mothers’ support group. Karns also launched the Back to School Community Health Fair, which has served over 1,700 people in two years with free immunizations, vision screenings, and other health services. Karns holds a Superintendent Licensure from Concordia University, a master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Texas A&M University, and a B.S. in Kinesiology from the University of Texas at San Antonio.