Cedar Ridge Elementary School in Eden Prairie, where Principal Valora Unowsky has led since 2022. She will step down July 25 to join St. Paul Public Schools. Photo by Stuart Sudak
Valora Unowsky, the principal of Cedar Ridge Elementary School, announced Tuesday she will be leaving the school district and joining St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) as its new senior executive academic officer. Her last day of employment is July 25.
Before coming to Cedar Ridge in 2022, Unowsky served as associate principal of Eden Lake Elementary. Before that, she held various literacy education and instructional specialist positions in St. Paul and Minneapolis public schools.
While Unowsky said in a statement that she was not actively looking for a new job, the position with SPPS “sounded perfect” for her.
“I have loved being your principal and leading this amazing school, but this position will allow me to focus solely on curriculum and instruction, which are my primary interests and passion, and to systematize academic supports for over 33,000 K-12 students across 68 schools in St. Paul,” Unowsky said in a statement released to Cedar Ridge families Tuesday.
Felicia Thames, the assistant superintendent of elementary education for Eden Prairie Schools, and the rest of the district leadership team will be conducting interviews for a new principal over the next month.
Cedar Ridge families are invited to fill out a survey about the qualities they’d like to see in the next principal. The district also plans to host a community conversation with the final three candidates, with more information expected in the coming weeks.