Buncombe County Schools announces leadership changes at several campuses

Buncombe County Schools moved Billy Harrell into the principal’s office at Weaverville Elementary, one of several leadership changes the district made across campuses including Haw Creek Elementary, Erwin Middle and Weaverville Primary. The shift matters for families because the person running a school shapes daily communication, discipline, staffing and how quickly a campus settles into the new year.

At Weaverville Elementary, outgoing principal Mary Nichols said Harrell would take over for the 2025-26 school year and that she would work with him over the coming weeks to help him transition. Nichols said she had spent three years at the school, giving the campus a handoff rather than a sudden break in leadership. Harrell was serving as assistant principal at Valley Springs Middle School before the move, and he previously worked as an assistant principal in Haywood County and taught at Erwin High School and in Georgia.

Harrell told the school community that Weaverville Elementary had "tremendous teacher leaders" and said he looked forward to meeting the Blackhawk family. For a campus like Weaverville, that kind of change can affect how families hear about calendars, safety procedures, student support and academic priorities before classes begin.

The district’s broader staffing moves fit into a larger planning process, not an isolated change. Buncombe County Schools says its three-year strategic plan was shaped by input from families, students, staff, business and industry leaders and other community stakeholders. The district’s May 7 board agenda also listed a personnel report on the consent agenda, showing that the leadership changes were moving through formal board and superintendent channels.

The annual nature of the reshuffle also matches past practice in Buncombe County. On June 2, 2022, the school board approved 20 new administrative assignments for the 2022-23 school year, including 17 principals, two directors and one specialist position, all effective July 1. A March 23, 2026 posting for director of federal programs also listed a July 1 start date, another sign that the district was lining up administrative changes heading into the next school year.

For Buncombe County parents and school employees, the key question is whether these moves are simply part of the district’s regular rotation or a response to school-specific needs. The district has not described the changes as a crisis. Instead, the staffing update points to an organization trying to place leaders where it thinks they can best support students, stabilize staff and keep campuses on track for the year ahead.