Dr. Joseph Sinclair, Executive Director

Dr. Sinclair has served for many years in various educational positions throughout North Carolina.  He comes from a prominent family of educators, which includes a tenure of over fifty consecutive years in educational service by his mother and father, and over thirty years by his wife, Claryce.

Joe Sinclair served for eleven years in the Guilford County School System as a teacher, local school administrator, Director of Personnel, and Assistant Superintendent for Personnel and Staff Development.  In 1979, he began a twenty-one year career as a public school superintendent, serving for twelve of those years in the prestigious Burlington City School  System.  During his tenure, the school system received nine Governor’s Awards for Excellence, was recognized as the state leader in the Career Development Plan, produced the North Carolina and National Teacher of the Year (which produced an oval office meeting with President Ronald Reagan), Dr. Sinclair's system consistently ranked in the top ten percent in academic performance in North Carolina.  After a successful career as school superintendent, Dr. Sinclair was selected as the Executive Director of the Northwest Regional Educational Service Alliance which provides professional growth opportunities for over seven thousand educators in northwest North Carolina and southwest Virginia.  In his present position, Dr. Sinclair is a strong advocate for developing partnerships with institutions of higher learning fostering a strong partnership with Appalachian State University.

Dr. Sinclair set successful educational goals early in his life, earning four graduate degrees by age thirty and also becoming one of the youngest school superintendents by age thirty-two.  His formal academic background includes the following: Bachelor of Science Degree (Appalachian State University); Master of Science Degree in Educational Leadership (North Carolina A & T State University); Master of Science Degree in Teaching (North Carolina A & T State University); Educational Specialist Degree (Western Carolina University); and Doctor of Education Degree (The University of North Carolina at Greensboro).  He also holds the following professional certifications: Advanced Superintendent’s Certificate (Doctoral Level); Advanced Principal’s Certificate (Doctoral Level): Curriculum Instructional Specialist Certificate (Graduate Level); and Teacher Certification at the Graduate Level.

At present, Dr. Sinclair is actively involved with professional councils at the state and national levels.  In 2002, he was selected to represent North Carolina on the Association of Educational Service Alliance (AESA) National Governmental Relations Committee.  He also has served on the North Carolina State Superintendents' Advisory Council, and the North Carolina Association of School Administrators’ Leadership Advisory Board.

Dr. Sinclair is actively involved with Appalachian State University, serving on four councils, including vice-chairman of the External Advisory Graduate Council, member of the Doctoral Council for educational leadership, and as Adjunct Professor in the graduate program.  He meets frequently with students and faculty to discuss various issues relating to public school K-12 education and higher education.

During his career, Dr. Sinclair has achieved many special honors and distinctions which include the following: Awarded a national research grant by the Educational Service Organization “Phi Delta Kappa” to co-author the Prospective Educator’s Guide to Employment Procedures in the Public Schools of North Carolina; selection as the North Carolina Educational Office Personnel’s District Ten “Boss of the Year”; Selected to serve on the Advisory Board for the First Citizens Bank and Trust Company; Selected to the Advisory Board for the State Employees Credit Union; Selected by the Burlington/Alamance Community College Association of Educational Office Personnel as “Administrator of the Year”; “Outstanding Contribution Award” by the Burlington Association of Educators; Region five Superintendent of the Year; Regional Superintendent of the Year by the North Carolina High School Athletic Association; Awarded the North Carolina Superintendent of the Year by the North Carolina School Boards Association; Awarded the North Carolina PTA District Six, Outstanding Educator Award; Awarded the Paul Harris Fellow Award as Outstanding Rotarian; and Honorary Chairman of the Iredell County March of Dimes. Dr. Sinclair has also been a member of numerous other organizations, including Phi Delta Kappa, Phi Kappa Phi, North Carolina Association of School Administrators, American Association of School Administrators, and the Association of Educational Service Alliance.  He has recently been selected to serve on the Superintendent's Division of the Board of Directors for the North Carolina Association of School Administrators and the Elon Home for Children.  He also serves as a managing partner for a successful consulting firm.

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Deanna K. Hanlin

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  Karen Lowe

 Karen is the education consultant for school library/media and grant writing for the NWRESA. She has been at the NWRESA since 1987 providing staff development and consultative services to media specialists and teachers. Although she retired in 2002, Karen continues to work on a part-time basis. She previously taught in Asheville City, Madison County, Unicoi County (TN), and Ashe County Schools. After her retirement from full time work, she formed her own consulting firm, Beacon Consulting, through which she travels and does workshops throughout the U.S. She also teaches graduate classes in library science at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. 

Karen is very active in professional organizations at the state and national level. She is past President of the North Carolina School Library Media Association (2005-2006) and has served as a member of the Board. She also served a two-year term as Secretary of the Affiliate Assembly of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) and four years on the Publications Committee. Karen will begin a four-year term as Director-Elect and then Director of Region IV (AASL) in July, 2009. She is the author of three books: Resource Alignment: Providing Curriculum Support in the School Library Media Center, Writing Grant Proposals: Tips for Educators and Others, and Backward Glances: A Journal of Endings and Beginnings. 

She has published articles on Resource Alignment in Knowledge Quest, the journal of AASL (Nov./Dec. 2001; Sept./Oct. 2003), as well as articles in North Carolina Libraries and Leading and Learning with Technology. She has presented at ALA and AASL national conferences and is a frequent presenter at workshops and state conferences around the country. 

Karen has helped many school districts write successful grants, ranging in amounts from $1,000 to $1.9 million. She also conducts workshops for schools districts and the region in how to write effective grant proposals. 

She is a former school library media specialist and classroom teacher with a strong background in elementary education, social studies and reading. She lives in Millers Creek, NC, with her husband, Ray and a Siamese cat named Jasmine. Together, they have five children, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

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John Caldwell

John Caldwell has been associated with the Northwest RESA for 22 years. He has served in several capacities including Regional Science Coordinator, Lead Instructional Specialist, and Education Consultant. Currently retired, he is an independent contractor with the NWRESA as a trainer for Teacher Performance Appraisal and Mentoring the Novice Teacher.

John is a certified national consultant with Learning Focused Solutions, Inc., and through an agreement with the NWRESA, he serves as a consultant for the Learning Focused Schools Reform Model for member systems.  

John's personal interests include being a member of the Lost Provinces Shape Note Singers.  He is also a Certified Master Gardener Volunteer through the Cooperative Extension Service, USDA.

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Barbara Ledford

 Barbara serves the office manager for the organization. She began working at the NWRESA with the Division of Manpower in 1977 and a year later became a full time employee of the regional center. She has worked with the center through its several transitions from a technical assistance center to a regional education center.

 In addition to being the office manager, Barbara is the executive assistant to Dr. Sinclair. She handles the budget and other financial matters and keeps well-organized records. Anyone needing information knows Barbara is the go-to person!

 She is a member of American Businesswomen’s Association and Baptist Home Baptist Church. In her spare time, she enjoys gardening and interior design projects. Barbara has three children and six grandchildren.

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Linda Reeves

  Linda joined the administrative staff of the NWRESA 12 years ago, and observed the transformation from Technical Assistant Center to what is now the Northwest Regional Educational Service Alliance.  She is an administrative assistant to our four educational consultants, and plays a vital role in planning and coordinating regional staff development activities and regional conferences.

Linda’s pleasant personality is reflected in each contact she has with educators on a daily basis.  Her organizational skills and her patient manner contribute to the smooth operation of the Northwest RESA.

Linda and her husband Roger have two children and one grandchild.  Linda enjoys cooking and entertaining with family and friends.

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Carla Leslie  

Carla serves as the administrative assistant for the Appalachian Region Math and Science Partnership Project (ARMS). She has been a member of the NWRESA staff since July 2004. Originally from West Virginia, Carla worked twenty-five years for Mercer County Schools in a number of departments including Federal Programs, Human Resources, Finance, and as an executive secretary for three superintendents. She also has expertise in technology training, website design, and public relations.

Prior to coming to North Carolina, Carla spent many years in public service assisting her husband in his eighteen-year term as Mayor of the City of Hinton. She was creator of the “Sunday Arts in the City” series, an arts program that hosted many notable events for the community including the West Virginia Symphony, Theatre West Virginia, and Parkersburg-Wheeling Ballet Company. Carla also served as Executive Director of the Summers County Convention and Visitors Bureau for six years.   In this position, she handled all marketing and advertising, procured several grants from the West Virginia Division of Tourism, developed a website for the organization, and created a number of information pieces promoting tourism within the area. She additionally served as a board member for the Southern West Virginia Convention and Visitors Bureau which represents a 9-county region. 

Carla was instrumental in founding a museum for veterans, the Veterans Memorial Museum of Southern West Virginia, Inc.,  in 1997, the first one of its kind in the state. She also served as Director of the museum which features exhibits from all major conflicts including Spanish-American War, Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam, Gulf War, Afghanistan, and the Iraqi conflicts.

Carla and her husband Jim have four children:  Derrick, a pharmaceutical technician; Brian, a helicopter pilot for the United States Air Force who just returned from his fifth tour in Iraq; Heath, who attends the University of North Carolina at Greensboro; and Heather, who attends the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

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