New Principal at Tanglewood Is A Strong Leader, Friends Report

CENTRAL — To friends who’ve known Dr. Kitty Ainsworth for most of her life, she is a natural leader who can be expected to pick up the reins as the new principal at Tanglewood Elementary School without missing a beat.  That is a tall order, since Tanglewood has had Louisiana’s top performing 3rd graders for three straight years.  Dr. Ainsworth is a graduate of Istrouma High School.  She earned her B. S. in elementary education from Southern Mississippi and her Masters of Education with an emphasis on curriculum and instruction from SLU shortly thereafter.

She later returned to school and earned a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction from LSU.

She has been a classroom teacher and principal.  Currently, she is an Assistant Professor at Southeastern.

One of her former classmates said, “She is a strong leader but a fair one.”

When one of her friends from Istrouma heard about the appointment, she said, “She’ll do a great job!  She’s a pistol!”  Then she immediately stood at attention and saluted, apparently remembering that Dr. Ainsworth, then Kitty Taylor, was head pepster at Istrouma High.

The new Central School Complex will begin operation in August with the opening of the new Central Intermediate School and Central Middle School.

But top-performing Tanglewood will continue in its current location in Tanglewood Subdivision.

Dr. Ainsworth will begin her duties July 1, 2012.