It is the last day of school, and Cottonwood Creek Elementary School Principal Dr. Andra Penny has a resolution: clean out her office.
Filled to the brim with photos and gifts from students, her workspace is a tribute to 29 years of memories at CCE.
Upon looking at what collectibles to part with, Dr. Penny decides to save the cleaning spree for another year.
“My office is always a trip down memory lane for me,” Dr. Penny said. “It brings me a lot of happiness because I can sit here and just look around and go, ‘Oh my gosh, I remember when that happened, that’s my daughter’s graduation or that’s the day students came in costume.’ When I look at my shelves, I just have to smile.”
Dr. Penny began her career as a kindergarten teacher at Sue Smith Elementary School, Justin Elementary School and Ginning Elementary School for 17 years prior to coming to Coppell ISD in 1992. She started as an assistant principal at the original Richard J. Lee Elementary School campus and Wilson Elementary School. Four years later, she was named principal of the newly-formed CCE.
Being the first ever principal, Dr. Penny had the agency to establish personal roots that remain to this day, including the school colors and mascot. These personal touches have built the school into a blueprint of her personal identity.
“We really had to decide everything,” Dr. Penny said. “I am a super patriotic person, and I thought red, white and blue would be great; I grew up around horses, so the Cottonwood Creek Colts just fit. It’s amazing having that foundation and building upon it throughout the years,”
One tangible indication of Dr. Penny’s connection to her students is the vibrant paraphernalia in her office. At the beginning of her career at CCE, she disliked the blank walls of her workspace and added various decorations, including themed salt and pepper shakers.
Throughout the years, students have gifted her dozens more photos and decor, and her collection overtook every shelf.
“Every item in this room has a story behind it,” Dr. Penny said. “Kids and teachers will go to other countries and bring me salt and pepper shakers and other things from all over the world. Whenever they’re older and come back to visit, they can see it in my office.”
In a district constantly evolving, Dr. Penny makes sure to keep CCE evolving with it. Taking the opinions of all of her faculty members, she has implemented new traditions throughout the years such as a weekly Genius Hour and school song.
“All of the different perspectives we have keep us moving and changing because you never want to be stagnant,” Dr. Penny said. “We do have a lot of traditions, but we also have to keep moving and getting new ideas and things.”
Dr. Penny’s leadership style is characterized by her love of being in the action of a classroom. In consistently visiting classrooms and interacting with students, she is able to know everything happening and organize CCE with her students’ interests in mind.
“She is like a ringmaster of a three-ring circus,” STEAM teacher Stacey Harris said. “This is the 29th year of CCE and she’s been here every year of it. She’s just very organized in that sense of how she just really knows what’s going on.”
Dr. Penny’s leadership is also padded by over 50 years of experience in education. Infusing her caregiving nature into her administrative style, her employees view her leadership through a maternal perspective.
“She’s almost grandmotherly,” assistant principal Julie Springer said. “It’s like when you go to visit your grandmother and you know you can get away with a few things, but she’s going to make you do it the right way in the end.”
Her influence expands beyond the walls of CCE. As the former president of the Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association (TEPSA), and as an adjunct professor at University of North Texas and Columbia University, Dr. Penny has gained new perspectives from across the nation in tandem with running CCE.
“I learned so much from the students at Columbia who come from all over the world, and hopefully in turn they learned a lot from me,” Dr. Penny said. “Some students would fly in and come to CCE because they can see it and believe a school like this is possible if they surround themselves with people who have the same vision and value relationships in the way they do.”
Reaching 30 years of leading CCE, Penny continues to add to her cache of memories. Whether in the form of a jaunty salt and pepper shaker set, or a photo of the annual school fairytale ball, Dr. Penny will most likely still have it sitting in her office.
Follow Anvita Bondada (@anvita_bondada) and @CHSCampusNews on X.
