Blythe Carpenter has nearly 20 years of experience as a classroom teacher and administrator. She previously served as the principal of Merriam Cherry Street Elementary School (MCS) of Bay District Schools in Panama City, Florida for three years. MCS is a Title I school serving a population that is 100 percent free lunch. When Ms. Carpenter assumed the principal job at MCS in June 2016, the school was rated an “F” by the Florida Department of Education and ranked in the lowest 300 schools in reading by the state of Florida. By the end of her first year as principal, Ms. Carpenter led MCS from an “F” to a “B” and was selected as Bay District Schools’ Principal of the Year. The following school year, MCS improved to an “A” and six months later, it was deemed a “Model School” by the International Center for Leadership in Education. The theme that emerged during this amazing run of success was #MCSBelieves, because that’s what Ms. Carpenter led her team to do—believe in kids.

In March 2018, Ms. Carpenter was promoted to Jinks Middle School (MCS’ primary feeder school). The school is currently rated a “C.” Ms. Carpenter looks forward to partnering with MCS to continue the students’ success in middle school. She will do so with a team of “believers” who will raise the bar for the highest academic and behavioral standards attainable.

Ms. Carpenter is the mother of two beautiful girls, Tressa and Braelyn.