Indianapolis Public Schools is excited to share that the IPS Board of School Commissioners approved Chelsea Thompson to be the next principal of a William Penn Middle School, a STEM School. She was approved during the Board Action Session on Thursday, November 16.
Chelsey Thompson is an established educational strategist with time spent as a classroom music educator, school administrator, workforce development coordinator, and director for corporate nationwide internship programming. Chelsey began her classroom career at the middle school level as a choral director and high ability coordinator, eventually shifting into the high school space as Director of Bands, leading successful competitive band programs at multiple districts throughout the state. She then served as a CTE and Visual Performing Arts administrator at Arsenal Technical High School, overseeing the 20+ career pathway options at ATHS, and all musical and artistic entities at Tech.
Most recently, she served as the Workforce Development Coordinator at Gaylor Electric, directing their nationwide internship programming for high school and collegiate students. She has focused her career on advocating for CTE, STEM, and music education opportunities for ALL students, which aligns perfectly with William Penn’s debut not only as a STEM middle school, but its welcoming of band, strings, and choir offerings as supported by the Rebuilding Stronger initiatives.
“I could not be more excited to return to Indianapolis Public Schools to lead William Penn’s debut as a 6-8 STEM middle school! I cannot wait to meet the students and families of the district that are considering making Penn their middle school home, and will hit the ground running to assemble the best staff imaginable for them. We will honor the history of our building while starting to author our own story in this exciting new chapter. Let’s go, Penn!”
We are excited for the future of Penn and look forward to welcoming Chelsea Thompson to the team. She will begin her tenure on December 4, 2023 working with current principal Mrs. Barnes to ensure a smooth transition.