About KIPP Pride Middle School
Founded in 2001 as KIPP Gaston Middle, KIPP Pride Middle School is a free, non-profit, high-performing, college-preparatory public charter school providing an academically rigorous and joyous school experience to 6-8 Grade students in Gaston.
Working together as a family, we know that the success of the individual and the success of the community is tied together in what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. referred to as “the fabric of inescapable mutuality.”
Because we work hard, we are proud of our growth and our accomplishments. We believe in bravery because we confront ignorance, racism, abuse, and corruption. We believe in urgency because our kids are in a race where the front-runners have a giant head start. We don’t believe that time is money; we believe the time is a precious opportunity to change lives and cannot be wasted any more than water can be spilled in a desert.
We believe in self-awareness and understand the necessity of modeling what we expect of our students because, as James Baldwin writes, “Children have never listened to adults, but they have never failed to imitate them.” We believe in passion because this is what ignites our fire and sustains our drive. Our passions push us to explore, engage in diverse and exciting activities, ask questions, seek solutions to problems, and set and reach personal goals – not only in school but in life.
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Shawna Mayo
Shawna Mayo is the Principal of KIPP Pride Middle School, where she is entering her sixth year of school leadership and her tenth year as an educator. A proud KIPP alumna, Shawna holds the distinction of being the first leader in the KIPP network to return to the school she attended as a student and serve as its principal; a journey that deeply informs her commitment to educational equity, transformational leadership, and creating opportunities for students to live lives of choice.
Shawna began her career as a middle school English Language Arts teacher, where she developed a reputation for instructional excellence and student-centered leadership. She subsequently served as a Grade Level Chair and Assistant Principal before stepping into the principalship. Across each role, she has remained deeply committed to developing people, strengthening instructional practice, building systems, and ensuring that students experience both academic rigor and a strong sense of belonging.
As principal, Shawna has demonstrated a sustained commitment to academic excellence, organizational stability, and student-centered school improvement. Under her leadership, KIPP Pride Middle School improved its North Carolina State Report Card by one letter grade to a “C” during the 2024–2025 school year and earned Academic Growth Exceeded recognition in both Math and Reading, placing the school among the top 5% statewide for academic growth. She has also cultivated a strong organizational culture, retaining 92% of instructional staff and 100% of the school-based leadership team during the 2024–2025 school year—the only KIPP North Carolina school without voluntary or involuntary departures that year. Her leadership has further contributed to instructional performance ranking in the top 10% of the KIPP network, a reduction of more than 25% in student out-of-school suspensions, and continued recognition for academic growth across multiple years. Most recently, she led the school through its first year of a merger during the 2025–2026 school year, maintaining a “C” performance grade, exceeding growth expectations across all tested areas, and positioning the school among the top 1% of schools statewide for academic growth.
Shawna approaches leadership through an equity-centered lens, advocating for equitable access to resources, rigorous and affirming instruction, meaningful professional learning, and strong support for multilingual learners and students receiving specialized services. Her leadership is grounded in KIPP Pride Middle School’s core values of Pride, Bravery, Self-Awareness, Urgency, Passion, and Integrity. She believes that effective leadership requires intentional preparation, authentic relationships, transparency, responsive use of data, continuous improvement, and a commitment to developing future leaders.
A graduate of Elon University, Shawna is passionate about cultivating thriving school communities where students, families, and educators are known, valued, challenged, and supported. She remains committed to expanding her impact beyond the schoolhouse by influencing the policies, systems, and structures that shape educational opportunity for students and communities.
KIPP Pride Middle School Values
Integrity
Integrity is our knowledge of self that helps us take responsibility for our actions and understand how we fit in the larger community. Integrity contributes to the acquisition of strong work habits and ethics and appreciation for excellence in self and others. Integrity also requires that we evaluate our actions (verbal and non-verbal) when no one is around.
Pride
We believe that the strength of our school comes from our Pride. Our Pride is our individual and collective desire to strive for excellence in all that we do. Because we work hard, we are proud of our growth and our accomplishments.
Bravery
We believe in bravery because we confront social and racial injustice. Additionally, if we are faced with a challenge, we are encouraged to lean into the discomfort with the help of our pride.
Urgency
We believe in urgency not as it relates to time, but because each day is an opportunity to positively impact the lives of our staff members, students and families.
Self-Awareness
We believe in self-awareness and understand the necessity of modeling what we expect of students because “Children have never listened to adults but they have never failed to imitate
them.”
Additional Information
Transportation
Visit or call the school to inquire about busing.
Uniforms
Our students may wear a GCP Middle School or college/university polo shirt, t-shirt, sweatshirt, or zip pullover without pockets. Uniform bottoms must be tan, navy blue, or black and made of khaki material. Uniform tops may be purchased in-person at the school.
School Nutrition
See what’s cooking in our kitchen each month here!
KIPP NC Civil Rights Complaint Procedure
USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form
KIPP NC SN Cash Handling Policy
Nurse’s Station
Families frequently use these two forms in conversations with our school nurse:
Health History in English and Spanish
Medication Authorization in English and Spanish
School Calendar
Our 2026-27 school calendar for families is available in English and Spanish.
Handbook
Our 2026-27 Student & Family Handbook (which includes our Family Engagement Policy) is available in English and Spanish.
Exceptional Children Program
To learn more about our Exceptional Children program and services, click here.
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act
Families are the fastest-growing segment of the homeless population in the United States. This act contains a specific definition of homelessness that includes a broad array of inadequate living situations, including:
- Living with a friend, relative, or other people
- Hotel or motel
- Shelter or transitional housing
- Car, park, or other public places
- Campground, storage unit, abandoned building, or other inadequate homes
- Youth living on their own, runaway youth, or youth kicked out
The living situations above do not include all situations that may qualify. If you or someone you know is in transition and would like to speak with someone about the program, please contact the McKinney-Vento Liaison for KIPP Pride or Lisa Phillips, the Coordinator of the NC Homeless Education Program, at (336) 543-4285.