Hoover Administrator Named State Assistant Principal Of The Year

HOOVER, AL — A longtime educator in Hoover has been given a statewide honor, as Rocky Ridge Elementary School Assistant Principal Aqila Malpass has been named Assistant Principal of the Year by the Alabama Association of Elementary School Administrators.

Malpass is in her fourth year as Assistant Principal at Rocky Ridge and has been an educator for 17 years. Before coming to Rocky Ridge, she was the math coach at Shades Mountain Elementary School.

Malpass is a Howard University graduate and is currently working on her doctorate in Educational Leadership at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

"I am always trying to learn something new and get better at something," Malpass said. "It is a public acknowledgment of the pride and joy that I have on a daily basis, whether I am working on something pleasant or unpleasant. This represents the manifestation of how much I love what I do."

Malpass currently oversees the school’s instructional leadership team assessing current practices and looking for ways to improve. Malpass’s efforts helped the school earn International STEM accreditation and jump six percentage points in the school’s grade on the Alabama State Report Card over the last few years.

She also forged a new program called Families as Partners in Education, which plays a tremendous role in supporting parents, especially during the challenges provided by the COVID-19 pandemic. Under Malpass’s leadership, she has helped the school grow both socially and emotionally. One of the ways she has done that was through the creation of the "Hallway of Diversity," which is an area in the school filled with objects to celebrate diversity.

"Mrs. Malpass has to be one of the most incredible educators I know on this planet," Principal Dilhani Uswatte said. "She inspires and motivates so many people from students to teachers, to parents. She truly is a beacon of inspiration for all of us."