On October 21, Bridges Preparatory School (BPS) announced it hired Kay Keeler as the new Assistant Academic Administrator.

Keeler is a native of Florida with 28 years of experience in education. She first came to Beaufort in the 1970s when her husband was stationed here in the military. Locally, she taught at Broad River Elementary and served as lead teacher and principal of Port Royal Elementary. The past four years Keeler was principal of St. Helena Elementary School, but she retired from the Beaufort County School District last June.

Mrs. Keeler holds a B.S. in Elementary and Early Childhood from the College of Charleston and a M.A. in Educational Leadership from The Citadel. Her expertise in Early Childhood Education will be a great asset to Bridges Prep, according to Bernie Schein, BPS Interim Administrator, who offered the position to Mrs. Keeler late last week.

“We both share the Paideia philosophy and are fully committed to it, knowing that social and emotional intelligence is the foundation for cognitive development. We both know that everything cannot happen at once, but with Kay here, Bridges will become a truly innovative school, delivering great results,” said Mr. Schein.

“It is an honor to be asked to be part of Bridges” Keeler said. “I watched attentively as our local charter schools developed, and I always felt BPS had the right formula of committed parents, teachers and staff, that critical partnership that supports child development in a safe environment. Research says that children succeed when autonomy drives their learning. From what I have seen at BPS so far, we have the perfect setting for that kind of self-learner, and we will continue to provide new methods and provide forums for creative thinking, both for students and teachers.”