Lillie G. Jessie was elected on November 6, 2012 to fill the remaining term of the Occoquan District seat which was vacated in the spring of 2012. The seat had been filled on an interim basis until the election. Mrs. Jessie was sworn in on November 13. Jessie, a former teacher and administrator in Prince William County Public Schools, retired in the 2010-11 school year after a 35-year career, 20 years of which were served as principal of Vaughan Elementary School.

Mrs. Jessie is a nationally recognized author, mentor, master teacher, and innovative administrator in the educational field. During her tenure with Prince William County Public Schools, she served as supervisor of the Title 1 reading program, a diagnostician, a reading teacher, assistant principal, and principal.

For 18 years, she worked in conjunction with the Delta Sigma Theta sorority to lead the annual community celebration in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and the Youth Oratorical Contest.

Mrs. Jessie has received numerous awards for her contributions to the educational community. In 1996, she received The Washington Post Distinguished Educational Leadership Award and was named the Prince William County Principal of the Year. She received the Unsung Hero Award from Channel 50, Educator of the Year from Dale City Christian Church, NAACP Community Service Award, Eboné Image Leadership Award from the National Coalition of Black Women, Prince William County Kathleen Seefeldt Community Service Award, and a Prince William Board of County Supervisors Commendation. She received the 2010 Universal Human Rights Day Award from the Prince William County Human Rights Commission. A new wing added to Vaughan Elementary School in 2009 is named for Mrs. Jessie.

She earned a master’s degree in communication disorders from Northwestern University and bachelor’s degree in speech pathology from South Carolina State University. Jessie has co-authored two anthologies, “The Collaborative Principal” and “The Collaborative Teacher,” published by Solution Tree. She was selected as one of six principals to write an entry in Dr. Richard DuFour’s book, “Revisiting Professional Learning Communities at Work…New Insights for Improving Schools.”