McKinney, Texas – When the students of Press Elementary return to school on Thursday, Aug. 15, they will find a new face there to welcome them.

Rachel Constantinescu, who has served as assistant principal at Bennett Elementary for the past five years, has been chosen as the new principal of Press Elementary. The position became available earlier this month when previous Press Principal Chris Clark left to pursue an opportunity with another district.

And, while it may take a little time to get the pronunciation of Constantinescu’s name just right, the Press Elementary community will discover quickly that she is an outstanding educational leader.

“I’m excited to have Rachel join the principals team,” said MISD Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Student Support Suzy Woodard. “I’ve watched her grow and develop as an assistant principal over the past five years at Bennett. During her time in MISD, she’s been a leader among her peers. She’s a great problem solver. She has a background of diverse experiences, and she is a great relationship builder with students, teachers and parents. She has the ability to make everyone involved at that campus feel like they are part of the Press family. With her background as an instructional coach, she is very strong in the area of curriculum, and I’m excited about what she is going to bring to Press and to the principals team.”

Constantinescu began her career 19 years ago as a fifth grade teacher in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania. Five years later, she came to McKinney ISD to join the staff of Slaughter Elementary as a third grade teacher and remained in that role until 2011 when she transferred to Burks as an instructional coach.

In 2014, Principal Amy Holderman brought Constantinescu on board as assistant principal at Bennett Elementary where the two have led approximately 50 staff and well over 500 students each year for the past five years.

During Constantinescu’s time at Bennett, the school has earned Level 1 and Level 2 certification as a Marzano High Reliability School and in 2018 was one of only 21 elementary schools in Texas to receive the Schools Transforming Learning Award from the Principals’ Institute.

In 2017, the campus worked with CoServ to host a special after-school STEM program for girls and in 2015 was one of only 20 schools chosen to represent Texas in Think Through Math’s annual third – fifth grade Red River Rumble math competition between Texas and Oklahoma. Bennett defeated their Oklahoma opponent by passing 3,100 online math lessons in one week.

“Rachel has been absolutely amazing as the assistant principal to our students, staff and parents,” said Holderman. “She is professional, dedicated and hard working. Her passion and desire to assist and serve others is truly a gift and asset to our school and the entire district. I am beyond proud and excited for Rachel to begin the next chapter in her professional career as the new principal at Press Elementary. They are getting someone truly special who will continue to do great things for their campus and McKinney ISD.”

Even as she reflected on her time at Bennett, Constantinescu looked eagerly forward to the possibilities ahead.

“I am grateful for the many experiences I have had throughout McKinney ISD that have brought me to this moment,” said Constantinescu. “There have been many people that have poured into me, and I will never forget these five years at Bennett. I am especially thankful for the mentorship of Amy Holderman. Bennett is an amazing learning community with strong history, relationships and academic success for all students, and I look forward to continuing to build on this at Press as well.

“The Press community has great staff and parent support which creates a strong learning environment for every student,” she said. “I am honored to join the Press family and continue the legacy that has been established by the strong leadership at this campus. I am so excited to get to know all of the students, parents and staff. The best is yet to come at Press!”

Constantinescu earned her bachelor’s degree in Bible and elementary education at Baptist Bible College and her master’s degree in educational leadership at the University of Texas–Tyler.

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