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Administration

Headshot of Vanessa Love

Principal, Vanessa Love

vlove@ncpschools.net

Hello everyone!

I am so happy to start this school year.  I am from Charleston, South Carolina. I lived in Germany for 4 years. I now consider Wilson my home for over 20 years.  I have coached basketball and volleyball at the middle school level for 12 years. I played both high school and college level basketball and volleyball.  I am a mother of two beautiful girls. I have been married to a wonderful man for  34 years.

I started my career in education as a substitute teacher, then as a teaching assistant, as a teacher, as an assistant principal, and now as a Principal. I have been in education for 25 years. I love to travel and visit other countries. I am so happy to have served in many different jobs within the education system. I have always wanted to be an educator and my dreams have come true.  I am very excited to be the Principal at Winstead Elementary School because now I’m able to reach so many more students' lives. Here at Winstead, we can learn and we will learn.

Assistant Principal, Melissa Denton

Headshot of Melissa Denton

Melissa Denton brings nearly 20 years of experience in education to her role at Winstead Avenue Elementary (WAVE). She has served in Nash County Public Schools since 2005, most recently at Nashville Elementary, where she completed her Principal Residency through NC State’s NELA program while earning her Master of School Administration.

A proud alumna of Southern Nash High School, Denton began her teaching career there as a lateral entry English teacher, working with students in grades 9–12. Over the years, she took on a variety of leadership roles, including coaching softball and serving on numerous school committees such as the Climate Committee, Curriculum and Instruction Committee, Graduation Speech Committee, Leadership Team, Key Club Advisor, PTO, and PBIS.

She also helped middle and high school students in the district's Evening Academy program to provide educational and behavioral support.

Denton holds a bachelor's degree in Communication from Mount Olive College and started her professional journey as a sports editor with Cox Communications before transitioning to education. Outside of school, she enjoys traveling and is an active member of the Beta Theta chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma, a global honor society for women educators.

Contact: madenton@ncpschools.net