Her Story
About Elizabeth
I've been in education for 19 years, and I've truly lived a lot of lives within this field. I started as a 4th and 5th grade teacher in Title I schools, working with economically disadvantaged students who couldn't afford field trips or basic experiences. I began writing grants to help get my students the resources they needed. As I moved into roles as an interventionist, academic dean, and assistant principal, I continued pursuing larger grants to support students and teachers. My specialty became turnaround campuses, taking failing schools and transforming them into successful ones. One of my proudest achievements was leading a campus from an F rating to a B rating in just one year under the Full Action Fund Grant, despite significant leadership challenges at the district level. After that success, the superintendent asked me to manage grants at the district level. What started as overseeing a couple of campuses grew into managing all grants and special revenues for the entire district as a one-person department. Now, in my fourth year in school business as the district special revenue manager, I oversee all funds that aren't state local funds. Beyond my district role, I've discovered a passion and talent for consulting with businesses on leadership, grants, and business growth. I also present on AI and other educational topics with friends. My true passion is building other people up, especially women, helping them realize there's room for everyone to succeed without the crab-in-a-barrel mentality.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Elizabeth
01What do you attribute your success to?
I really do believe that the Lord has put a calling on my life, and that's what drives me when things get really tough. I come from a home where we were taught that if you've been given a blessing, if you have different gifts, it is selfish to keep them to yourself. What I feel like I've been blessed to be able to do is a lot of things, and I'm really supposed to do what I've been called to do. To sit up and look around and not use those gifts is a waste of everyone's time, a waste of me being here. To quote my mother, once you stop learning, you might as well die. I'm very driven that way, and I'm very goal-oriented. I feel called to help people to peak, to grow. I wouldn't feel like myself otherwise. I didn't come from a place where it's okay to just stand around. My mother literally retired because she said everyone who was her boss, she could do their job, so she retired and then proceeded to have four different careers afterwards. That's the life I came from. You aren't supposed to just stand around and look. You've been called to do something, do something with it. I think that's a lot of what drives my success.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Make sure you keep your priorities in order. This is me, I gotta pray first. Keep your priorities in order, and realize that if you are willing to work for it, and keep your priorities in order, what's for you is for you. You don't have to fight somebody else for it. There's room for everybody. It doesn't have to be a crab in a barrel theory. I'm passionate about building other people up, specifically helping other women to realize that we can all succeed together, that there's room for everyone.
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