Dixie Heights High School principal Roddy Stainforth has been named Kentucky's Principal of the Year by the Kentucky School Counselor Association, a statewide honor that recognizes principals who champion school counseling programs.
The Kenton County School District announced the award on Aug. 10, alongside a second honor: Woodland Middle School counselor Julie Lovell earned the KSCA's Middle School Counselor of the Year title.
Two winners from one district in the same year is uncommon.
The KSCA presents the Principal of the Year award annually to a school leader who supports counselors and the school counseling program. Nominations for the 2026 cycle closed June 15, according to the association's awards page. The organization also recognizes counselors at the elementary, middle and high school levels, plus an Advocate of the Year and a Legislator of the Year.
Stainforth has earned district recognition before. He received a Team Kenton Staff/Community Award at the Kenton County Board of Education's Nov. 3, 2025, meeting, one of 11 staff members honored that night.
The awards arrive just days before the district's first day of school. Students across the Kenton County School District return Wednesday, Aug. 19, with teachers reporting to buildings Thursday, Aug. 13, for professional development days leading up to the start.
The district serves roughly 14,000 students across 17 schools and is the sixth-largest in Kentucky.
Dixie Heights is located in Fort Mitchell. The next Kenton County Board of Education meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 8, at 6 p.m. in the Karen L.W. Collins Board Room at 2044 Tuscanyview Dr. in Covington.
