NE Valley Times

The Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) Governing Board has appointed Melinda Splitek as the new principal of Coronado High School and Amy Hardy as the new principal of Mountainside Middle School. The appointments were made during the Board’s meeting on June 11.

Splitek, who has been Assistant Principal for Educational Services at Coronado since 2018, expressed her enthusiasm for the upcoming school year. “I am honored and humbled to continue at Coronado High School in a new capacity,” she stated. “I look forward to augmenting our signature programs, like the Concurrent Enrollment Partnership with Scottsdale Community College, and expanding the Entrepreneurship Hub.”

Splitek also emphasized her commitment to community engagement through initiatives such as the Coronado Promise Scholarship program. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Education from Arizona State University (ASU) and a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from ASU. Before joining SUSD, Splitek taught English Language Arts at Mountain Ridge High School in the Deer Valley Unified School District for nine years.

Hardy returns to Mountainside Middle School after serving as an assistant principal at Desert Mountain High School from 2019-2022 and most recently as Assistant Principal for Educational Services at Chaparral High School. “I’ll never forget taking my first job at Cheyenne Traditional School when I graduated from ASU 17 years ago,” she said. Hardy holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education from ASU and a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from Northern Arizona University.

She outlined her goals for Mountainside Middle School: “Nurturing the IB Middle Years Programme, honoring our talented students and staff, and partnering with our incredible community.”

SUSD Superintendent Dr. Scott Menzel praised the collaborative process that led to these appointments. “Part of being a world-class, future-focused education organization is providing opportunities for our employees to grow professionally and advance in their careers,” he stated.

The Scottsdale Unified School District serves over 21,000 students across 30 schools in Phoenix, Paradise Valley, Fountain Hills, Tempe, and Scottsdale.