Leadership
Principal
Dr. Teresa K. Anderson
Dr. Teresa K. Anderson has devoted her career to enhancing student achievement, especially in urban areas. She has worked alongside teachers, parents, students, and district leaders to improve student outcomes in rural and urban school systems. Dr. Anderson was raised in a small agricultural town in North Carolina by a parent who was an educator. Her educational philosophy emphasizes offering opportunities that inspire students to pursue academic and professional goals beyond high school and their local communities.
Dr. Anderson has served as a Principal in North Carolina (Hoke County, Alamance- Burlington, and Bertie County), Chicago Public Schools, Waukegan Public Schools, and Richmond Public Schools. She has also worked as an Assistant Principal in North Carolina and Minnesota. From 2021-2023, Dr. Anderson was the Director of Employee Relations for Richmond Public Schools, where she supervised a team that conducted investigations into employee claims and built consultative relationships across the district's 44 schools and 5,000 employees. She rewrote 20 outdated administrative procedures and facilitated successful policy implementation.
Most recently, Dr. Anderson has been the Principal at George Washington Carver Elementary School in Richmond, Virginia, since July 2023. In this role, she has led initiatives such as partnering with community organizations to provide literacy tutoring, strategically allocating budgets, and leading professional development to improve teaching practices.
Dr. Anderson has a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, a Master of Education from Barat College at DePaul University, a Master of School Administration from East Carolina University, and a Doctor of Educational Leadership from Fayetteville State University. She holds superintendent and principal licensure in multiple states.
Assistant Principal
Dr. Candice Smith
cmoton@rvaschools.net
Dr. Candice Smith believes in providing students from all backgrounds optimal learning experiences and resources that will help them grow academically, as well as socially. She has been serving and leading with love in Richmond Public Schools for over 20 years. Dr. Smith’s classroom and leadership experiences includes teaching students in grades PrK-5, as well as serving as summer school principal and exceptional education compliance coordinator. In addition, she served as mentor teacher, lead teacher for grades K-2, and K-5 lead teacher for both reading and mathematics at Bellevue Elementary School, where she was also named Teacher of the Year. Dr. Smith has also chaired and co-chaired several committees to improve student
learning throughout her tenure at Fairfield Court Elementary School and E.D. Redd Elementary School.
Dr. Smith hails from Richmond County, VA. She earned her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Liberty University, Master of Education in Special Education from Virginia Commonwealth University, and Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Saint Martin’s University. Dr. Smith has also served as an Adjunct Professor at Virginia Commonwealth University.
Assistant Principal
Rubi Cousins
Mrs. Rubi Cousins is a native of Henrico, Virginia where she attended Henrico County Public Schools for primary and secondary education. She has always had a passion for education so she pursued the teacher track while she attended Old Dominion University. Mrs. Cousins graduated from Old Dominion University with a Bachelors of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies in 2016, and a year later graduated with her Masters of Education in Elementary Education PreK-6 from Old Dominion University in 2017. Following her dreams of school leadership, Mrs. Cousins was inducted into the Wallace Foundation Cohort with Henrico County Public Schools where she was accepted into the Administration and Supervision K-12 program at Virginia State University. She graduated with a Masters of Education in Administration and Supervision from Virginia State University in the Summer of 2022. She successfully participated in the Aspiring Leaders Academy Cohort in Henrico County Public Schools and became a graduate of the Wallace Foundation Program.
Mrs. Cousins was a former Kindergarten Collaborative Teacher at Montrose Elementary School in Henrico County, where she also served as Mentor Coordinator, Step Team Lead Coach, Extended Day Teacher, Math Grade Level Representative, Teacher Advisory Council and First Year Teacher of the Year. She was recently the Lead Behavior Intervention Teacher under the Elementary Intervention Program at New Bridge Learning Center where she worked with students and teachers from all 46 elementary schools in Henrico County. In this role Mrs. Cousins served as Team Leader, Admin Designee, Safety Chair, Teacher Ambassadors Committee, and Teacher Advisory Council.
Mrs. Cousins is eager about working with youth of all ages acknowledging their potential and pushing them to achieve their dreams! One of Cousins' favorite quotes is "there is a brilliant child locked inside of every student". -Marva Collins
Mrs. Cousins is excited to be an Assistant Principal at George W Carver Elementary School!