Regina McClure: The glue to Jackson-Reed’s SciMaTech academies

Lolera Tesema, Opinions Editor

Jackson-Reed High School opened up the school year with a new addition to its administration: Regina McClure. The NAF director who can juggle meetings like a gymnast, and make a schedule look like a work of art. She’s the glue that holds our NAF academy together, and the secret ingredient that makes it all run smoothly. This is her first year at this school and has already created such a big difference in our community within the past 6 months.

McClure completed her degrees and students at Geneva, GW, and UDC where she studied special education and professional school counseling. Ms. McClure has taught at Coolidge High School for 10 years being a special education teacher and in charge of all the college programs offered at the school. After that, she spent 4 years at Eastern as an academy director, where she oversaw the Biomed program and EMT program. Currently, she is a NAF (National Academy Foundation) director JR: IT, Health Sciences, and Engineering.

Ms. McClure joined the education field because she has a passion for working with teenagers and wants to make a positive impact in their lives. “I always had a passion for working with teenagers, even back in high school, I was a student leader.” She strives to continue working with this age group and making a positive impact in their lives. Transferring from a smaller school to one with almost 3,000 students can be a scary experience, but she enjoys the challenge. “It’s harder, yes, but I love it. I just have to scale up so that all the JR students feel loved & seen and get the attention that they deserve!”

You’ll never catch Ms. McClure lacking in school – always at meetings, hosting events, listening sessions, the list could go on forever. As the NAF director, it requires a lot of attention and hard work, having a lot on her plate. “Time management is most definitely an area that I’m still working on balancing.” On top of it all, she has an adventurous, busy 2nd life. “On any given weekend, I’d be hiking, paddle boarding, biking, rock climbing, caving, and so on.” Additionally, it seems that she has a close-knit family and group of friends that she enjoys spending time with. Despite her busy life, she always makes time for students, and never fails to put a smile on their faces.