First Avenue Elementary has new principal

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmailby feather

Corrie Guerrero, left, and Katy Wilkins are the new faces at First Avenue Elementary School in San Manuel. Corrie teaches second grade while Katy is the new principal. John Hernandez | Miner

San Manuel Miner

Katy Wilkins is the new Principal at First Avenue Elementary School in San Manuel. Katy is a native of Wyoming where she was born in Casper and raised in Cheyenne. She was a cowgirl and owned her own horse. She says that it kept her out of trouble as it is a lot of hard work taking care of a horse.

Katy graduated from the University of Wyoming. She has a B.A. in Elementary Education, Early Childhood Education and Special Education. She has two Masters Degrees in School Administration and Curriculum & Instruction. In 1990 she moved to Casa Grande with her husband Dennis. She began teaching in the Casa Grande Elementary School District. She also taught at Toltec where she was an Administrator from 2005 – 2011. Her last position was as the Transformation Coach at Ajo Unified School District.

The first time Katy visited the Tri-Community area was when she was working at Central Arizona College with the Science Engineering Mathematics Aerospace Academy (S.E.M.A.A.) for kids. SEMAA is part of the NASA program and the John Glenn Research Center. Katy did workshops for kids from the Tri-Community, Hayden-Winkelman, Kearny and Superior. The workshops included robotics. Katy said she got to meet a lot of people in education from the area.

“(SEMAA) is how I learned about this beautiful area,” she said. “I really love it here.”

She helped start up the Science Fair in the Oracle School District after meeting Dennis Blauser. She was President of the State of Arizona Science Teachers Association in 2010.

Katy says she “loves the stars” and enjoys star gazing. She volunteers with the CAC planetarium.

Katy said that the biggest challenge in education today in Arizona is not only the money appropriated by the state (Arizona ranks 49th in the nation for education funding) but hiring qualified teachers. “We had the greatest teacher shortage in the state this year,” she said, due to teachers leaving.

Katy says she loves her staff at FAES.

“Our teachers are so compassionate with their students,” she said. “We’re in for an awesome year!”

John Hernandez (785 Posts)

John Hernandez lives in Oracle. He is retired and enjoys writing and traveling. He is active in the Oracle Historical Society. He covers numerous public events, researches historical features and writes business/artist profiles.


Facebooktwitterby feather
Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmailby feather

Comments are closed.

  • Additional Stories

    Fatal accident closes highway

    March 13th, 2024
    by

      A fatal collision Monday, March 11, had SR 77 closed between Biosphere Road and Oro Ford in Oracle for […]


    Annual San Manuel Copper Classic motorcycle race returns March 9

    February 4th, 2024
    by

        Well, they will be at it again. The Trail Riders of Southern Arizona (TRS) will be hosting the […]


    Strong Start to Superior’s 2024

    February 4th, 2024
    by

    Our great town has entered 2024 at hypersonic speed, and we are excited about the many major milestones we have […]


    Winkelman Preparatory Academy plans expansion

    February 4th, 2024
    by

    By Mila Besich   When the school year first started in August of 2023, 16 young girls began attending the […]


  • Additional Stories

    New welding facility open for regional learning in Superior

    February 4th, 2024
    by

      By Nathaniel A. Lopez   It’s official.   On Jan. 23, members of Superior Town Council, Rebuild Superior, Resolution […]


    Queen Creek Bridge replacement project begins on US60; full closures will be required between Superior, Miami for blasting

    February 4th, 2024
    by

      SUPERIOR – The Arizona Department of Transportation is replacing two bridges on US 60 east of Superior with spans […]


    Pinal County hosts vaccine clinics in Kearny, Mammoth

    February 4th, 2024
    by

        On Jan. 14, the Pinal County Animal Care and Control offered low-cost vaccines to local pet owners in […]


    OWN Oracle to disband; Oracle Visitors Center to close

    February 4th, 2024
    by

      By Nathaniel A. Lopez   After many years of service in the Oracle, and surrounding communities, OWN-Oracle Women’s Network, […]


  • Copperarea

  • Southeast Valley Ledger