Janeece C. Docal began her career in school leadership by obtaining her Master’s in Education from The George Washington University.  She served as a Fulbright-Hays scholar to New Zealand studying curricular frameworks and reform efforts and as the Washington Post Cultural Ambassador and Fulbright Memorial Fund Scholar to Japan. She completed her Education Specialist degree at The George Washington University in Educational Leadership and Administration and has taught as an adjunct professor for the Graduate School of Education and Human Development. Ms. Docal is currently in Georgetown University’s Executive Masters in Leadership program with the McDonough School of Business and is completing her Doctoral Thesis with the University of Vigo, Spain.

Ms. Docal began her time in school leadership as an Assistant Principal at the Columbia Heights Education Campus–Bell Multicultural Senior High School in northwest Washington, DC, where she was previously an educator for nine years. She is a New Leader for New Schools (cohort 2008) and became the proud principal of Powell Elementary School in July 2009 where her passion for her students, teachers, and community continues to inspire her work. Powell is an International Spanish Academy, the recent winner of the Fight for Children Quality Schools Initiative Rising Star Award 2012, and second place bilingual school of the year for the Embassy of Spain’s Colegio del Año 2013 award.  During her time as a teacher with DCPS, Ms. Docal was awarded the First Class Teaching Award and the Monarch Award for commitment to academics and service learning. It is with great humility that she accepts this award and with gratitude to the DCPS and Powell community, and all of the mentors and family that have supported her along the way.