Gwinnett County Public Schools recently created a new position ensure all students are receiving equitable education opportunities.

At its regular monthly meeting on Aug. 15, the

Board of Education appointed Tommy Welch, principal of Meadowcreek High School, as the district’s Chief Equity and Compliance Officer.

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In this new position, Welch will provide leadership for ensuring equitable educational opportunities for all students. He will facilitate development and implementation of the district’s equity plan and oversee the alignment of that plan with all local school plans for improvement.

In this new role, he also will collaborate with district leaders to develop and implement a systemic process for identifying and addressing inequities that impede student engagement and academic achievement while also maximizing opportunities for community engagement.

In 2017, Welch was recognized as Georgia’s top principal by the Georgia Association of Secondary School Principals. In 2018, he was named as one of three finalists for the National Association of Secondary School Principals’s 2018 National Principal of the Year award.

Welch is a graduate of Gwinnett County Public Schools’ Quality-Plus Leader Academy, Aspiring Principal Program (Cohort 3).