Congratulations to Heritage Middle School Principal Sheila Shimmick who was named the 2024-2025 Outstanding Middle School Principal of the Year by the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals, Region 11. The award recognizes outstanding school leaders who have succeeded in providing high quality learning opportunities for students and is an acknowledgment by peers for the exemplary contributions they have made to the profession.
“I am truly honored,” Shimmick stated. “I contribute this award to the amazing educators I work with in GCISD and HMS. Education is not an easy profession, but when you work with excellent people, they bring the best out of you. I do what I love.”
Shimmick has 25 years in education, all with GCISD. She started as a teacher at Heritage Elementary, where she taught second and fourth grades for 10 years before being named the school’s assistant principal. In 2013, she was named principal at Colleyville Elementary, a role she held for seven years before being selected to lead Heritage Middle School in 2020.
Under her leadership, HMS has flourished as a national model of college and career readiness. For the second consecutive time, HMS was honored in 2023 as an Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) National Demonstration School, which she says “is just a part of our everyday culture on the campus.” Additionally, the school also had more than 60 students participate in UIL Academics competition during the 2023-2024 school year with many returning with medals.
The honor was announced June 19, 2024. Honorees from each region will be recognized at the association’s 2025 Summer Workshop. Region 11 encompasses Cooke, Wise, Denton, Palo Pinto, Parker, Tarrant, Erath, Hood, Somervell, and Johnson counties. Each TASSP region honors a middle and high school principal and assistant principal of the year.