Superintendent Craig McCarthy said Wonders was the consensus top choice from the interview committee which included several Lee teachers and district administrators.
“Megan is uniquely positioned to continue the academic growth at Lee Elementary. She has worked side-by-side with Lee Elementary teachers as well as Angie Jefferson to help students reach the State's third grade reading standards,” McCarthy said. “Her skills, experience, and knowledge of the formula that makes Lee exemplary made her the consensus choice for our interview committee.”
Wonders has worked at TK for the past 15 years as a literacy coach, teacher, and Title 1 coordinator for the elementary schools. She said many colleagues at Lee encouraged her to apply for the principal role.
“As an educational leader, I believe in establishing a collaborative learning environment with high expectations. In addition, building relationships to encourage academic and social growth is essential. I look forward to supporting students, families and staff in the continued climb towards success. I am excited to meet you and work together on this journey!” Wonders wrote in a letter to Lee Elementary families.
Wonders said she knows there are already many great things happening at Lee and she wants that to continue. “We’ve made some great progress here and I want to continue that climb. Overall, I want to support this building team in this transition. I want to support the staff, students and families,” she said.
Wonders said Lee is a family. “We are all a team. If someone is successful, we all celebrate that success. We all help each other and encourage each other. If someone needs help, we all help. Everyone stands by each other. It’s something special that you don’t find everywhere,” she said. “The staff here has all been so encouraging and supportive of my new role. Their belief in me is a driving force.”
Building relationships with the staff, students and families is key to continuing successes. “We have to be partners. We are all here for the same end goal and we want to listen to concerns and celebrate student successes.”
Wonders was honored in 2022 as a recipient of the annual Above and Beyond Award from her TK peers. Marnie Reynolds nominated Wonders saying, “Megan Wonders serves Lee in so many ways. She wears so many hats and those hats change from day to day. No one deserves this award more than her. She trains staff, she provides materials and she’s always willing to meet with individual staff members about students they have questions about. She helped develop and organize our summer tutoring program for students that qualified. She met with teachers, trained them on the materials that they were going to use, and provided them with everything they needed.”
Wonders has also helped fill staffing needs at Lee when necessary, working in the lunchroom, out on the playground and even in classrooms.
“She is finding a way to make other staff members feel that they have everything they need and when thanked she always replies the same way, ‘I just do what I can.’”
Wonders earned her undergraduate degree at Western Michigan University and her Master’s Degree in educational leadership at Grand Valley State University. She began her career in education in Adrian where she taught fourth grade and then at Wyoming Public Schools until moving to Thornapple Kellogg Schools.
For the last 15 years, she and her family have been firmly rooted in the TK community. Her husband, Matt, is a health and PE teacher and coach at Thornapple Kellogg High School. They have two children in middle school and high school. As a family, Megan said they love being active outside, hiking, traveling and finding new foods to try.