A familiar face: Ashley McCombs named principal of Mountain Brook Elementary School

Next school year, Mountain Brook Elementary will have a new principal with a familiar face.

In April, the Mountain Brook Board of Education approved the appointment of Ashley McCombs as the new principal.

“I’m really excited about the future of Mountain Brook Elementary,” she said. “I want to thank the parents, the school board, for entrusting me with a responsibility of such magnitude.”

For McCombs, who said she never stops learning, applying for the job was a logical next step. She began her career with Mountain Brook Schools in 2010 as a reading specialist before serving as assistant principal in 2012. All the while, she was attaining multiple degrees from Samford University. She said her passion is to have continuous improvement so as to “be the best leader in all aspects.” It’s a passion, she said that is fueled by her students, whom she calls her kids. 

Although McCombs didn’t initially plan to go into education, she hasn’t stopped trying to better her craft since she switched majors from child psychology to elementary education in her first year of college. It was while working with kids as part of psychology classes that McCombs said she realized she could learn even more about the behavior and minds of children by working with them in the classroom. 

“I was observing children interacting and discussing what they were learning from their books at the local library for one of my assignments, when I realized that the best way to study the mind is to teach,” she said. “I changed my major, and here I am.”

McCombs graduated from the University of Alabama at Birmingham with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education in 2000. From 2005 to 2007, she attended Samford University, where she received a master’s degree in elementary education. At the end of 2007, she also obtained National Board Certification as a middle childhood generalist and went on to mentor others.  In August 2010, she accepted a degree as an educational specialist in elementary education from Samford University and in July of 2012, she received a certification in instructional leadership, also from Samford.

McCombs said she felt compelled to continue her education, despite having to sometimes backtrack on what is considered the traditional progression. In 2001, she began her teaching career at Trussville City Schools, where she grew up and continues to live. There, she taught fourth- and fifth-graders for more than eight years. McCombs said while she never thought she’d leave Trussville, she couldn’t turn down the opportunity to teach at MBE when it came around.

“It was a big leap,” she said. “But it was a good time for a new challenge. I knew I would be able to impact other children throughout the school, not just the ones in my classroom.”

In addition to her work in the elementary classroom, McCombs said she also began working at UAB in 2015 as an adjunct instructor teaching early childhood/elementary master’s courses. 

“I’m a teacher at heart,” she said. “So teaching at UAB allows me to once again connect to that perspective and bring what I learn back with me to Mountain Brook Elementary.” 

On becoming the school’s new principal, McCombs said leadership is not about directing from up high, but rather about inviting everyone to chime in on the decision-making process. 

“I love sitting beside students and teachers as they think deeply about concepts and generalize into daily practice,” she said.

Before the school year begins, McCombs said she will be inviting parents and the community to decide what is next for MBE. She plans to ask teachers, staff and parents to chime in on everything from who they’d like to see the school hire for various positions to how the school should grow and improve. 

Over the summer, McCombs said she will spend a lot of time reflecting.

“I’m going to pray really hard and listen to all the conversations about the future of the school,” she said.

McCombs, who refers to herself first and foremost as a wife and mother, said being an educator and a parent drives her to make decisions for her students as if they were going to affect her own children: Caleb, Carson and Cooper. McCombs’ husband, Shawn, is in his 20th year of teaching. After 16 years as a math instructor, Shawn McCombs works as a physical education teacher, as well as the football and girl’s golf coach at Hewitt-Trussville Middle School.

In the announcement to the MBE community, Mountain Brook Schools Superintendent Dicky Barlow said McCombs’ commitment to the school would mean an effortless transition for both her and MBE. 

“Our search for a new principal in any of our schools is guided by the need to select someone who understands and believes in the goals, values and direction of Mountain Brook Schools and who will continue to move the school forward in a process of continuous improvement,” Barlow said. “We believe Ashley is the right fit for this position and will provide a seamless transition for staff, students and families. We are excited about the leadership Ashley McCombs will provide to assure an effective, challenging and engaging education for all Mountain Brook Elementary students.”

The future means connecting more with others outside the school for the betterment of the community as a whole, she said.

“We have been working diligently at MBE over the past few years to build community within classrooms and across the school,” McCombs said. “It is the perfect time to extend those relationships into our school community. [I’m] excited about revealing the potential in every one of our learners by assuring they receive an effective, challenging and engaging education.” 

Whatever the future will hold, it will be a joint decision, she said. 

“This is why I’m here,” McCombs said. “It’s not for me. It’s for them. Together, we will need to decide what the first next step and vision will be for Mountain Brook Elementary.”