Nancy Rousseau
Nancy Rousseau is an educator and school administrator who is currently the principal of Little Rock [Central High School], a National Historic Site located in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Early life and education
Rousseau was born in New York around the mid-1950s, and was raised in Tenafly, New Jersey. After graduating high school in Tenafly, she went to study at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. She ultimately earned her undergraduate, a bachelor's degree in English education, from Adelphi University in Garden City, New York. After entering the education field, she later earned her master's degree in educational administration from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.Service in education
Her first educational position was as an English teacher in Port Washington, New York, where she earned a "New Teacher of the Year" Award. She then taught English in Midwest City, Oklahoma, relocating to Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1976. From 1976 to 1986, she served as an English teacher at Pulaski Academy, a prominent local private school. She joined Little Rock Central as an assistant principal after earning her master's degree. From 1998 to 2002, she served as principal at Pulaski Heights Junior High School in Little Rock. During her time there, she led the school's transition from a junior high to a middle school. In 2002, she returned to Little Rock Central as principal. In April 2024, the school celebrated her continuous 22 years in the role. As of 2023-2024, the school contained 2,260 students, all under Rousseau's care. During her time as principal, she has overseen multiple commissions celebrating the historical integration of the school.In 2024, after 22 years working in the district, Rousseau requested the Little Rock school district increase her pay to at least match that of George Maxey, a newly appointed principal in the district. Maxey was being paid a year, whereas Rousseau was compensated only, a difference of.