Watkins Mill High School has a new assistant principal—but she’s not new to Watkins Mill. Former special education resource teacher Lora Johnson has returned as an assistant principal.  

“I am very excited to be back at Watkins Mill High School to serve the community,” Johnson said. Johnson was an Instructional Specialist during the 2019-2020 school year. Before that, she used to be the special education resource teacher. 

Prior to teaching at Watkins Mill High School, Johnson was a math teacher at Gaithersburg Middle School. “It was basically the same as teaching here, only difference was the age group,” Johnson said.

Johnson’s love of teaching goes far back to her college days. She was a math major in college and tutored at a local high school while studying at Virginia Tech where she found her passion for teaching. 

Still, online learning has been a challenge for Johnson as the new assistant principal. “I miss seeing the students and getting to know them. Online school makes it hard to get to know the students, especially the freshmen,” Johnson added.

In addition to being the assistant principal, she also helps to run the family food market at Montgomery Village Middle School and monitors attendance at WMHS. Johnson said, “In all of my years in being an educator, being a teacher has especially been the hardest thing. It does have its challenges.” 

“What I love most about being the assistant principal is seeing the students participating and engaged in learning,” Johnson added. “I think the school will reopen depending on state guidance. But I am looking forward to going back to school and seeing all the students again.”