Our Principal - Dr. Patricia A. Zissios

Dr. Patricia A. Zissios joined the Alexandria City Public Schools as principal of Lyles-Crouch Traditional Academy on July 1, 2004. Before coming to Alexandria, she spent thirty-one years in the Prince William County and Fairfax County school districts as a teacher and principal.

For six years, Dr. Zissios was the principal of Crestwood Elementary School in Springfield, Va., where she worked to establish a Core Knowledge focus, which is the philosophy behind Lyles-Crouch Traditional Academy. LCTA has now been recognized as an Official Core Knowledge School by the Core Knowledge Foundation (Charlottesville, VA).

Originally from Hempstead, Long Island, N.Y., Dr. Zissios traveled extensively as a child while her father was in the Air Force, spending seven years in Germany. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education, with a minor in German, from Longwood College. Both her Master's and Ph.D. in administration were earned at George Mason University. She is also a part-time faculty member at George Mason University, teaching graduate level courses in administration and supervision. Her honors include the Virginia Association of Elementary School Principals' "School Bell" Award in 2003 for creating the Crestwood Family Center, the Northern Virginia Leadership Award for Public Service in 2001, Springfield Citizen of the Year, finalist for the Robert Spillane Leadership Award in 2002, first runner-up for Virginia's "National Distinguished Principal" in 2003, American Legion Educator of the Year in 2003, Washington Post Distinguished Educational Leadership Award in 2009, and finalist for VAESP National Distinguished Principal for 2007. Dr. Zissios has participated in the Washington Post's Principals Leadership Institute and was named Alexandria's Principal of the Year in 2009.