Wendy Jung
Wendy Jung will be the principal at the new Harrison Elementary School when it opens next fall.
Ms. Jung is currently the principal of Harrison Elementary and has served as the school’s leader for the last four years. The new Harrison Elementary is under construction and will be completed for the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year.
“As a STEAM school at Harrison Elementary, we provide students with learning experiences that build strategic thinkers and problem solvers who are vital community members at any age, five to fifty-five,” said Ms.
Jung. “Our community partnerships with Enterprise South Nature Park, the Tennessee Department of Transportation, and Martin Marietta have provided support for our Problem-Based Learning and our design challenges to extend student learning. We look forward to having unique makerspaces and a future forest kindergarten at the new Harrison Elementary.”
The new Harrison Elementary is under construction on Highway 58 across the street from the existing school on property next to Brown Middle. The new Harrison will have 80 classrooms, age-appropriate playgrounds for the different age groups in the school, a gym, and makerspaces for children to use skills learned in STEM activities. Makerspaces allow children to work in groups and use concepts from science, technology, engineering, and math to share ideas and unleash their creativity. Makerspaces have led to the development of products that are providing solutions to today’s problems. The completed new Harrison Elementary will provide space for up to 880 students.
Ms. Jung is a 29-year veteran educator and leader in Hamilton County Schools. She started her career as a teacher at Big Ridge Elementary, and she also taught at Hixson Middle School. Ms. Jung then became a curriculum facilitator and consulting teacher at East Lake Academy and also served as a consulting teacher for Franklin Middle School.
Administration was the next step on the career ladder for Ms. Jung as she was selected as the assistant principal at Franklin Middle School. She moved to the principal chair at East Lake Academy a few years later and helped lead the school off of the state’s priority list. She also served as principal at Chattanooga Middle, Howard High School, 21st Century, and Tyner Middle School.
Ms. Jung also invested two years as a district principal working on a National Science Foundation (NSF) research project with the Teachers Development Group leading math studios and professional development in mathematics in Denver, Tacoma, Oakland, and Chattanooga.
Teaching and children are a family affair for Ms. Jung as she is the mother of five, the parent of a teacher, and married to a teacher. She is a member of the Chattanooga 2.0 Innovation Action Team, and she was a PEF Leadership Fellow in 2001.