Thank You, Mr. Griffin

 

The John Hancock Demonstration Schools Family would like to express our sincere gratitude to Mr. Griffin for his service to our school community. Best of luck in retirement.

 

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Biography – Principal Bill Griffin

William J. Griffin grew up in Philadelphia.  Griffin attended LaSalle University, where he graduated with a BA in Education and Gwynedd Mercy University where he earned a MS degree in Educational Leadership.  

Griffin taught for 16 years as a special education teacher in the School District of Philadelphia, at the Ada Lewis Middle School, Austin Meehan Middle School and Jones Middle School.  During Griffin’s tenure as a teacher, he assumed multiple leadership roles such as the Special Education Liaison, Dean, and PFT Building Representative.

In 2001, Griffin became the School District of Philadelphia Data/Technology Manager for the Office of Specialized Services/Intermediate Unit (IU) 26.  Griffin was responsible for the IDEA grant, Penn DATA, Easy-TRAC Medicaid funding, compliance and special education classroom programming.  Griffin also served as the Senior Project Manager for the Philadelphia version of EasyIEP, a web based interactive system, used to develop individual educational programs (IEPs) for every special student. EasyIEP currently serves approximately 32,000 students annually with 20,000 users.  

In 2005, Griffin was appointed as Principal of the Kennedy Crossan Elementary School and in 2009 Griffin was appointed  the Principal of the John Hancock Demonstration Elementary School.  In 2011, Griffin was appointed to serve as the Principal of the General J. Harry LaBrum Middle School with the goal of consolidating both the Hancock and LaBrum Schools.   Griffin worked with both school communities to successfully create a common equitable and inclusive school culture, increase student achievement and enrollment.  As a result, in 2016 both schools were officially renamed as the John Hancock Demonstration Elementary School by the School District of Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Department of Education, making one school consisting of two school campuses, the John Hancock Demonstration Elementary School Campus (K-5) and the John Hancock Demonstration Middle School – General J, Harry LaBrum Campus (6-8).

William Griffin currently lives in the Pennypack Park section of Northeast Philadelphia with his wife of thirty-six years, Dawn Griffin. The couple has three children and five grandchildren.

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