By Erich Wagner (File photo)

When Alexandria students return to school next month, they will notice a few fresh faces greeting them at the doors.

Five new principals will make their debuts when the bulk of students start September 3. While three have risen from within the ranks of Alexandria City Public Schools, two are new to the district, hailing from other jurisdictions.

Superintendent Morton Sherman announced last month that Greg Tardieu would serve as principal for George Washington 1 Middle School. He replaces Gerald Mann, who recently became director of middle schools.

Tardieu, who began his educational career as a history teacher, served as a principal at two Oregon middle schools — Fleming Middle School and North Middle School — prior to landing in the Port City. During his tenure at Fleming, the school was named Champion School for the State of Oregon in 2009 and ’10.

Tardieu’s fellow newcomers are Pierrette Hall, at George Washington 2 Middle School, and DeBerry Goodwin, at Francis C. Hammond 1 Middle School.

Last school year, Hall, who’s been with the district since 2010, was the lead academic principal at T.C. Williams.

Goodwin worked as an administrative intern at ACPS last year. Prior to joining the district, he served as an assistant principal at King’s Fork High School in Suffolk.

On the elementary level, officials promoted district school improvement coach Rae Covey to principal of Douglas MacArthur. Covey took her previous position in September, producing quarterly reports for the Virginia Department of Education’s Office of School Improvement.

Before joining ACPS, she spent seven years as principal of an elementary school in Ithaca, N.Y. That school was recognized as a High-Performing/Gap-Closing public school for six consecutive years under her direction.

Finally, the district also is welcoming Lakisha Covert as she heads up John Adams Elementary School. Covert was the principal of Lamont Elementary School in Prince George’s County from 2010 until this summer.

During her tenure, Lamont’s standardized test scores increased between 10-percentage and 30-percentage points, and participation in the school’s PTA rose from three members to 200. The National Association of Elementary School Principals named her a national mentor principal last year.