New principals appointed at Read Mountain, Lord Botetourt

New principals have been appointed at Read Mountain Middle School and Lord Botetourt High School, effective immediately.

A press release from Botetourt County Public Schools announced that Debbie Harris is the new principal at Read Mountain and Beth Mast will assume the principal’s position at Lord Botetourt.

Harris earned a B.A. in Biology and a M.A. in Teaching from Hollins University and began her career in education at Read Mountain Middle School as a classroom teacher. During her 14 years in the classroom, Harris served on the Leadership Team and as the History Department Chair.

In 2011 she completed her Ed. S. degree through the University of Virginia and became the assistant principal at Read Mountain in 2013. She transitioned to Lord Botetourt High School where she has worked as an assistant principal since 2017.

Mast earned a B.A. in History and an M.A. in Education, Curriculum and Instruction from Virginia Tech and began her career in education at Cave Spring High School as a teacher and coach. After several years in the classroom, she became the Social Studies coordinator for Roanoke County Public Schools, during which time she completed an Ed. S. in Administration and Supervision through the University of Virginia.

After working at Hidden Valley Middle School as an assistant principal, Mast transitioned to Botetourt County Public Schools in 2013, where she served one year as the assistant principal at Lord Botetourt High School. She has been the principal at Read Mountain Middle School since 2014.