The Region 5 Leadership Team is pleased to announce that Ms. Linda Shannon has been named the new principal for Mantua Elementary School.

Throughout her career, Ms. Linda Shannon has embodied the philosophy of educating students “by name and by need.”  Her warmth, care, compassion, and focus on the needs of ALL students are clearly a match for the Mantua Elementary School community.  Ms. Shannon began her educational career in 1999 as a special education teacher in Stafford County Public Schools. From 2002-2007, Ms. Shannon taught in the Boston Public School system before returning to her home state of Virginia to serve as a special education teacher at Cedar Lane School in FCPS.  During her time at Cedar Lane, Ms. Shannon taught in a variety of content areas, and was ultimately promoted to serve as the Special Education Department Chair.  In March of 2015, Ms. Shannon was named as an Assistant Principal at Frost Middle School.  Currently, Ms. Shannon is the acting principal of Providence Elementary School.

Ms. Shannon has worked with students, families, and teachers within the Advanced Academics Program at Frost Middle School and has supervised numerous content areas over the last seven years.  She has been a valued member of a large and talented administrative team, which has given her a deep understanding and appreciation for developing, empowering, and mentoring others. Ms. Shannon has been a critical leader at Frost Middle School in aligning instructional practices with the division’s Theory of Action: strong Tier 1 instruction, powerful collaborative teams, welcoming and culturally responsive environments in our schools and classrooms. She has been instrumental in developing a differentiated, focused, and engaging professional development program for all staff members. Her innovative methods for developing and gathering student data to make informed instructional decisions have been replicated throughout the division. 

In 2020, Ms. Shannon was named Outstanding Leader for Region 5 Schools and was a division finalist.  In the same year, she and her team were recognized by the entire FCPS Leadership Team with an Above and Beyond the Call of Duty (ABC) award.  Ms. Shannon is personally vested in this community as she lives in a neighborhood served by Mantua Elementary School.  In addition, her daughter currently attends a Woodson pyramid elementary school. During her time in FCPS, she has demonstrated an innate talent for forming strong, positive, and collaborative partnerships with her staff, colleagues, parents, and (most importantly) students.  She is consistently proactive and responsive in working with all families and is highly engaged with her students.  Equity is at the center of all that Ms. Shannon does. 

Linda’s previous supervisor, Principal Anthony Harris, states that “Linda has earned the respect, admiration, and support of faculty, staff, students, and the parent community with her relentless focus on professional development, data analysis and response to student needs. Her commitment to instructional leadership reaches far beyond the walls of Frost Middle School as she has shared her expertise with school-based and division leadership on various special projects throughout her tenure. Ms. Shannon shows how much she cares every day. As principal of Frost Middle School, I can rest assured that I have an instructional leader and a colleague who will make decisions in the best interest of students every time.”

Ms. Shannon holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from James Madison University and a Master of Arts in Education from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

Please join me in welcoming Ms. Linda Shannon as the new principal of Mantua Elementary. She will be assuming the position on July 1, 2021.