Veteran educator Phillips joins Foundation in new executive director position

February 13, 2025

SANFORD, NC — Wendy Wicker Phillips, who spent much of her 30-year career as an educator at Deep River Elementary School, has been named the executive director of the Lee County Education Foundation.

In the newly created position, Phillips will serve as a public-facing advocate to help LCEF collaborate and partner with the greater Lee County community and Lee County Schools to fulll the Foundation’s mission — that of helping to create an outstanding school system that graduates students well-prepared for the 21st century workplace and success in life.

Chairperson Susan Keller called Phillips “a perfect t” as the scope of the nonprot Foundation’s work grows.

“We are so pleased to be in a position to need an executive director,” Keller said. “Recent expansion of programming means our footprint and opportunity to make an impact on LCS has grown, necessitating a position to oversee the execution of these new programs. We also really need someone who can consistently work on building relationships with partners within the community. Wendy is a perfect t for this job, and I look forward to working with her as she helps LCEF grow even more.”

Phillips, a native of the Asbury community in Chatham County, began her career as a 3rd grade teacher at Siler City Elementary School in Chatham County. But the vast majority of her time in education was spent at Deep River, where she began as a reading teacher and then taught 2nd grade until 2013. She then spent a decade in Chatham County serving as a curriculum coach at J.S. Waters School, from where she retired last year.

"When I left Deep River, it felt like I left one home to go back to another,” she said.

As a curriculum coach, Phillips supported data-driven instruction targeted to group and individual student needs, as well as worked to support principals, teachers, and specic student groups by implementing teaching initiatives.

She described her role in Chatham County Schools as a “jack of all trades” position — doing a wide range of things to address and help solve specic challenges and problems, either in response to teacher requests or based on data related to student and classroom performance.

“We were really like the feet of central ofce,” Phillips said. “They would say, ‘This is what we want to do.’ They would train us, then we would go out and implement, and support implementation.”

Always working, in short, in a support role to ensure performance centered goals were met.

In the new executive director position, Phillips will be working 20 to 25 hours per week and report directly to the Foundation board chairperson and make regular reports to the full board. Specic responsibilities will also include program oversight, fundraising, coordinating social media and website content and administrative duties. Phillips will also attend public meetings held by Lee County Schools and represent the Foundation at community events. She begins work Feb. 17.

She cited the effectiveness of “Head of Class” and other Foundation programs and the impact on schools as “amazing” examples of support that educators appreciate — and as incentives and valuable retention tools.

Vicki Haislip, a former principal at Greenwood Elementary School, has served as the Foundation’s president since 2014. The new executive director position replaces the president role, allowing Haislip — who led Greenwood to a “Head of Class” prize in 2011-12 — to return to the Foundation’s board of directors.

“I am in a unique position to have watched our growth to the point of needing a full-time executive director,” Haislip said. “It is so exciting to be at the point of needing this position. I had the opportunity to work with Wendy while we were both educators, and I feel she brings unique talents to this role, which will facilitate our continued growth. We welcome Wendy, and I personally look very forward to working closely with her as we continue to grow, reward and impact students and staff of Lee County Schools.”

‘PUT THAT AT THE FOREFRONT’

As an educator, Phillips says she’s seen how a supportive environment and building strong relationships in the classroom correlates to better outcomes. She thinks her time “in the trenches” will help her aid the Foundation in nding more ways to support Lee County Schools as a whole and educators specically.

“I’m not so far removed from a classroom that I don't remember what that feels like,” Phillips said. “But I have seen a bird's eye view of things from kindergarten all the way to 8th grade, and even doing some work with high schools … I've also dealt with educators across the state. To me, the one thing that holds true is that teachers want what's best for their children, and they're hard, hard workers, and they have a challenging job, and any way we can support them, we need to put that at the forefront.”

She stressed the importance of support systems in schools — systems that, among other positives, demonstrate to students how important reaching their data goals is and connect school learning to life goals. Anything that aids teachers in focusing on effective student instruction, and helps them build better relationships with parents, she said, will create better results.

“It’s not a complicated formula,” she said.

“Relationships are my happy place, and so impactful, and often overlooked because of all the demands on classroom teachers,” Phillips said. “It’s such an easy thing to implement with huge impact. So start with relationships, relationships with the kids, relationships with the families … it makes accomplishing all other goals more attainable. The most successful classrooms I went in always had that feel, like we're a team.”

She credited Lee County Schools for helping her grow into the teacher she became, and said her passion for education made her new role as “an ideal t” for her career.

“I did most of my teaching at Deep River in Lee County, and they grew me into the teacher that I was,” she said. “Lee County gave me leadership opportunities, let me lead a grade level, gave me a voice at the county level, and really prepared me for the leadership role I had in Chatham County. This is really an opportunity to give back to the system that supported my growth. I'm looking forward to supporting the teachers and students of Lee County.”

Phillips and her husband Dwayne — he’s a teacher at J.S. Waters in Goldston — have three adult children.

“The members of the Foundation are very pleased that Wendy is joining us as we look for additional ways to motivate our students in the Lee County public schools,” said Dennis Wicker, who led the launch of LCEF. “As a former educator, her energy and can-do spirit can assist the Foundation in nding effective tools for enhancing the academic performance in our public school classrooms.“

Superintendent Dr. Chris Dossenbach said Lee County Schools is excited about welcoming Phillips and continuing to partner with the Foundation.

“Wendy’s passion for education and support for teachers will further enhance opportunities for our students and schools,” he said. “We also deeply appreciate Vicki Haislip’s dedication and leadership — her work has set the stage for continued success.”