Shelly Truelson has wanted to be a teacher since the fourth grade. She has never wavered from the goal and now she is the new principal of Foxboro Elementary. 

“I came home from school one day,” she said. “There was a severely disabled student there and I said, ‘I’m going to be a teacher.’ I had no other plans.”

Truelson grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania but moved to Utah to go to Utah State University to become an elementary teacher. “I was the first one in my family to graduate from college,” she said. “After I got my degree I went to work for Davis School District as a first grade teacher. This is my 19th year in the district.”

She also worked as a literacy coach and was assistant principal at Bountiful and Muir Elementaries before becoming an assistant principal at Foxboro two years ago. She was named principal as the new school year began. 

“This is the best community and culture I’ve ever worked in,” she said. “They’re determined, passionate about the students and dedicated to helping students learn and grow every day. They’ll do whatever it takes to meet the individual needs of the students.”

Truelson said the moment she walked in the doors two years ago she felt a sense of camaraderie and belonging. “The staff has always been like that. They’re close. When you walk into the break room they’re eating and laughing together.”

There’s no shortage of laughter at the school, she said. “They make learning fun. They have a focus on inclusion, diversity and kindness as core values to develop a positive culture of school and community.”

Pre COVID Foxboro was identified as one of the lower performing in reading and math, said Truelson. “We’ve focused on student individualized instruction and data analysis to implement the best instructional methods for all students. That’s what we’ve had the largest amount of growth in.”

There has been up to 14% growth in RISE (Readiness Improvement Success Empowerment) scores, she said. “That’s a state mandated end of level summative assessment. We’ve also had a 7% increase with reading and math in Acadience assessment. We’re excited to continue that work.”

Truelson said she attributes it overall to teachers working together. “They look at the data on a frequent basis and design lessons using best practices. They’re deliberate in planning and data analysis.”

Foxboro is a French immersion school. “I think it is so beneficial for students,” she said. “It gives students a chance to explore a different language and learn about cultures from other countries. About 60% of the student body is in the immersion program.”

There’s a very diverse population of students at Foxboro, said Truelson. “There are close to a dozen languages from 17 countries. It gives another layer of acceptance.”

It’s a great experience for teachers from other countries, she said. “We have two college age interns from France. They live with host families in the community and get a lot of experience in America.”

Truelson said she has two new initiatives she’d like to implement as principal besides continued academic growth. “I want to increase community engagement. We’re going to host an event once a quarter for the parents and students. We’re having a family movie night in September in the gym. We’ll have concessions and bring blankets. It’s a chance to get to know the school and invite the community in.”

She also has a goal for the school to become a certified school of kindness. “We’re partnering with One Kind Act A Day Foundation,” said Truelson. “It’s a way to encourage compassion, empathy, life skills and being kind.”

As a certified school of kindness we get to come up with how we implement that, she said. “There’s a monthly kindness challenge and each class participates in it. The Foundation determines if we met our goals and in April or May we’ll become a certified kindness school. I’m excited to meet that goal.”

Foxboro has come a long way in the last few years, Truelson said. “In academics, inclusion and developing a positive culture and pride in being a Foxboro Falcon. We want to keep learning and growing every day.”