Toppenish principal finalist for national award

A Central Washington principal is one of six being considered for the national Principal of the Year award. His school serves one of the highest-poverty student bodies in the state.

Trevor Greene, principal of Toppenish High School on the Yakima Indian Reservation, has been named a finalist by the National Association of Secondary School Principals, the organization announced today.

The school serves a 95-percent minority population and nearly all students there qualify for free and reduced-price lunch, a measure of poverty.

Greene grew up on the reservation, according to the announcement.

The NASSP chose Greene as a finalist because he “established high-profile engineering and biomedical programs, implemented an advisory program, expanded opportunities for special education students, and formed invaluable community partnerships,” according to the announcement.

Toppenish students can earn up to 30 college credits from the University of Washington by the time they graduate from high school, due to Greene’s efforts.

The national middle and high school winners will be recognized in Washington, D.C., Sept. 19-22.

Greene and the other five finalists will each receive a $1,500 grant, and the two national award winners–one high school and one middle level–will receive additional grants of $3,500. The grants will go to programs at their schools.