MADISON – Tosha Swearingen has accepted the position of Assistant Principal at Rainbow Elementary School.

In 2010, Swearingen started teaching first-graders at Columbia Elementary School. Transferring to Mill Creek Elementary School, she taught kindergartners. Next, Swearingen served as Instructional Partner. For the last two years, she worked as the district’s Elementary Instructional Specialist with heavy focus on reading instruction.

“As Assistant Principal, my goal is to foster a culture that not only ensures Rainbow is a fun and safe environment for learning but also supports and empowers our teachers in their professional growth and development,” Swearingen said.

“Relationships are so important to me. I look forward to building relationships with the faculty, students and their families,” she said.

Concerning her teaching philosophy, Swearingen quoted Robert John Meehan: “Teachers who love teaching, teach children to love learning.” “(This) highlights the fundamental role of passionate educators,” Swearingen said. “A skilled educator not only loves their craft but also excels as a thoughtful curriculum designer, collaborator with colleagues, cultivator of meaningful student relationships, connector of classroom lessons to real-life experiences and a dedicated, lifelong learner.”

In 2023-2024, Swearingen succeeded in helping guide MCS in adoption of ELA (English Language Arts) textbooks and rollout of new state standards . . . two challenging tasks.

“I worked with reading coaches to help provide professional learning, support teachers (and) use teacher surveys’ feedback to develop ELA framework committees for each grade level,” Swearingen said.

“I led those committees (for) positive changes to our pacing guides and resources. We worked together to develop common assessments for (next) school year,” she said.

Committees will present their work on July 29 for Professional Development Day. “I’m proud of my role in helping our district navigate this process. I feel confident that our district plan for ELA will support teachers with instruction and students in learning,” Swearingen said.

Her husband, Cyrus Swearingen, teaches and coaches at Bob Jones High School. Their sons are Riley, a Liberty Middle School seventh-grader, and Parker, a Heritage Elementary School third-grader.

“I enjoy traveling with my family. We love Walt Disney World and the beach! I love being an aunt to my nieces and nephew and enjoy volunteering in my church nursery,” she said.

Because Tosha’s father was in the U.S. Army, her family lived in South Korea; Colorado Springs, Colo.; and El Paso, Texas.