Driving Academic success through collaborative leadership
Kenneth Stampe
Educational Leader
- Ken@kennethstampe.com
- 972-765-4005
Leadership Philosophy
Education leadership is more than managing a campus, master schedule, and student discipline; it is about cultivating an environment where both students and staff feel empowered to take risks to achieve excellence. On this page, I outline the core principles that guide my philosophy, which is rooted in the belief that success is built on a foundation of relational trust and a commitment to measurable growth.
Instructional Leadership & Staff Development Courses
Stimulating Curiosity & Academic Discussion with Naïve Tasks
A research-based practice for opening a lesson that engages student curiosity and academic discussion.
The Five Keys to Student Motivation
A research-based approach to creating an instructional culture that stimulates student motivation based on the book The Will to Learn by Dave Stuart, Jr.
Framing the Lesson
Extension to the educational text The Fundamental Five Revisited: Exceptional Instruction in Every Setting by Cain, Laird, Cotten, and Ellspermann, which focuses on creating engaging and effective lesson frames.
From Personality Profiles to Classroom Success
A practical and extremely effective way to use personality profiles to build classroom cultures and maximize student communication and management based on the research published in Four People You Should Know by Stu Schlackman
Leadership Experience
- Wylie H.S. Administrator Intern (2025-2026)
- Wylie I.S.D. Leading the Wylie Way (2025-2026)
- Wylie H.S. Professional Development Presenter (2026)
- Rockwall I.S.D. Future Leaders Academy Member (2024-2025)
- Richardson H.S. English II Team Leader (2020-2024)
- Richardson H.S. Instructional Leadership Team Member (2020-2024)
- Richardson I.S.D. Professional Development Presenter (2019-2024)
- AVID Site Team Member & AVID Student Mentor (2013-2024)
- Richardson I.S.D. Curriculum Writer (2021-2023)
- TEA STAAR Review Committee Member (2022-2024)
- Richardson H.S. Campus Technology Support Team Member (2019-2021)
- Richardson I.S.D. Textbook Adoption Committee Member (2019)
- Richardson H.S. Positive Behavior Interventions & Support Team Member (2013-2015)
Certifications & Education
- Principal as Instructional Leader (expected May 2026)
- English Language Arts (4-12)
- Special Education (EC-12)
- Business Education (6-12)
- Social Studies Composite (8-12)
- ESL Supplemental (4-12)
- Gifted and Talented Education
Concordia University – M.Ed. Administration (Spring 2026)
University of North Texas – Bachelor of Science
My Experience
2013 - Present
Wylie ISD (2025-present)
Richardson ISD (2013-2024)
EnglIsh II Teacher
I successfully led students to achieve an average passing rate of 92.2% on the STAAR EOC English II exam. I differentiated instruction for over 130 Special Education students through co-teacher inclusion classes. I developed a creative fiction/nonfiction writing course, including all curricular materials. I created the English II curriculum for all district teachers, including lesson plans, assessments, and pacing tools.
2005-2008
Wells Fargo (2008)
Bank of America (2006-2007)
AMC-Trademark (2005-2006)
Mortgage Lending Manager
At Wells Fargo, I managed a team of mortgage loan officers. My duties included leadership, hiring, performance evaluations, goal setting, and budgets. At Bank of America, I co-led a partnership with HomeVestors. My duties included training, on-boarding, and relationship management of the account. At AMC, I was co-owner of the mortgage company, overseeing all aspects of business operations.
2002-2003
LoanStream
Director of Training
I created and facilitated a five-week new-hire training program for new college graduates. The program combined instruction, assessment, and one-on-one coaching to integrate them into the sales force. I also created ongoing professional development courses for existing employees.
Student Testimonials
See what students have shared about me as their teacher.
Isabel
“I was in Mr. Stampe’s Advanced English 2 my Sophomore Year. Mr. Stampe was definitely one of the best teachers I’ve had. I always enjoyed coming into his class and hearing about the new things we were going to learn that day. From grammar rules to Shakespeare, it was all very interesting. I always enjoyed how he made the class open to discussion. Being able to share my views on things, maybe that I didn’t understand or just wanted to learn more about, really benefited my learning. If you don’t pay attention in this class, it’ll be hard to understand what is going on. This class is engaging and you really understand that from the first time you step in to Mr. Stampe’s class. No matter what, Mr. Stampe will always support you and your writing journey to grow you not just as a student but as a person. This class definitely made me a better writer. I feel prepared and ready for my junior year thanks to Mr. Stampe. Be thankful that you’re lucky enough to be in Mr. Stampe’s class. At the end of the year, your perspective of language arts will be changed. Good luck and have fun learning!”
Camila
“I was in Mr. Stampe’s Advanced class, and going in I was nervous because I knew the class was going to be more rigorous than last year and it was. Fortunately, Mr. Stampe made it so easy to get through the class. One of the things that made it easy was that we never really had homework. Obviously, if you didn’t finish work you would do it outside of class, but other than that, I didn’t have to worry about English too much. Something we did during class when we read a book together was called Socratic Seminars which was where you would basically talk about the book etc. For my group specifically, it was a little rough because we had a hard time starting the conversation. Thankfully, Mr. Stampe was always there to help our group start the conversation and ask more in-depth questions of our peers. Mr. Stampe is just one of those teachers who really helps you in any way he can if you’re not understanding a topic. For example, in our class we did grammar rules and then do a quiz to see if we understood them. On a certain grammar rule I was having a rough time and did badly on the quiz. Mr. Stampe offered tutoring which I went to, and he walked me through the quizzes and gave me examples of the rule to get a better understanding and it really helped me. Mr. Stampe is just overall a great teacher, and if you get him as your English teacher, you definitely got lucky!”
Taylor
“What I loved about Mr. Stampe’s class was how engaging it was. Mr. Stampe brought a really fun energy to the class and always taught us in a way that kept students interested in the material. His assignments always incorporated fun elements, and I enjoyed doing them. We learned about a wide range of different literature from Julius Caesar to the Book Thief which was very interesting. I like how Mr. Stampe creates a learning environment that encourages collaboration with other students. I feel that it is really helpful to be able to look to your peers for help and advice as well as your teacher. Julius Caesar was my favorite thing we learned because we got to watch the movie as well as read the script which really helped my understanding of what was going on. Overall I had a great experience in Mr. Stampe’s class!”
Runor
“One of my favorite parts about Mr. Stampe’s class was the journal entries we had at the beginning of each class. Journaling daily in Mr. Stampe’s class was a therapeutic way to express my thoughts and feelings. It helped me process my emotions and gain clarity on things. Writing my thoughts down on paper was a way for me to organize my thoughts and reflect on my day. I can look back on my journal entries and see how much I’ve grown as a student. Plus, it’s a great way to track my progress and my way of thinking over time. Overall, journaling daily helped me understand myself and the other students around me.”
Nicholas
“When I started English 2, I didn’t feel confident with my English until I met Mr. Stampe. He taught me everything and helped me improve my English. Like essays – when I started I didn’t know how to start an essay until Mr. Stampe helped me know the basics and I got better. Mr. Stampe is always gonna help you because he wants you to improve and help you reach your goals.”
Michelle
“What I loved about Mr. Stampe’s class was how engaging it was. Mr. Stampe brought a really fun energy to the class and always taught us in a way that kept students interested in the material. His assignments always incorporated fun elements, and I enjoyed doing them. We learned about a wide range of different literature from Julius Caesar to the Book Thief which was very interesting. I like how Mr. Stampe creates a learning environment that encourages collaboration with other students. I feel that it is really helpful to be able to look to your peers for help and advice as well as your teacher. Julius Caesar was my favorite thing we learned because we got to watch the movie as well as read the script which really helped my understanding of what was going on. Overall I had a great experience in Mr. Stampe’s class!”
Kevin
“Walking into Mr. Stampe’s class at the beginning of the year, I didn’t know what to expect. But as time went on, it was actually a really fun and exciting experience for me, let me tell you why. Mr. Stampe is a teacher who is very insightful. He and his lessons never had a dull moment and were very, very fun and exciting. In Mr. Stampe’s class, you will go over the fundamentals of proper punctuation, grammar, and more, and how to improve it better than what you already know, etc. Getting used to Mr. Stampe’s class was quite simple really. Go into his classroom, read the day’s assignment on the whiteboard, and get to work. Also, copying and plagiarising things are a big no-no in his class. But out of all my classes, Mr. Stampe’s class had to be #2 on my top three because Mr. Stampe was a super helpful teacher to me when it was trouble for me to understand things during a lesson or assignment. Also, the Julius Ceasar lessons were super exciting and when reading it interested me even more and more, that’s until the bell rang. But overall I loved Mr. Stampe’s class so much and when it was the final day in the class and when walking out of his class room I knew I would miss it.”
Danae
“I wasn’t a great admirer of English as a subject because I thought I wasn’t very good at it. Until I met Mr. Stampe. He made everything extremely simple to understand, and he was always looking for methods to help me improve my writing skills. Mr. Stampe encouraged me to think creatively, which improved my writing. He is not harsh about turning in homework late, and his assignments were very very simple. Since I was his first period of the day, his lessons were never boring, and he always managed to get the students interested. When he first introduced us to an SAQ, some of us struggled, but he provided us with pointers and solid advice on how to improve. Which actually helped me progress from the first SAQ to the last one. The journal prompts were my favorite part of his class since they helped me write out all of my stress from the school year, and it also benefited me as a writer and my grade. He was the best English teacher I have had since I started high school because freshman year I definitely had a strict teacher. I am pretty sure you all are going to love his class like I did so good luck!”
William
“Mr. Stampe was one of the best English teachers that I have had; he really seemed to know a lot of writing techniques and he seemed to be invested in teaching the class. His class was a lot of fun, and it really helped me with my writing. Before his class, I had no clue how to use commas or semicolons; now I kind of know how to use them, but I have gotten a lot better than I was before his class. My favorite thing about this class was the unit on Caesar. It was a lot of fun to watch the plays and get into groups with my classmates and get to share ideas with them. The class was loads of fun and I know that any future class of his will have a fun and enjoyable time in his class.”
River
“I can honestly say Mr. Stampe is one of the best teachers I’ve had. There have been countless lessons Mr. Stampe has taught me that has helped me tremendously in both my personal writing, school, and even day-to-day life. He listens to and takes note of student feedback. When he can, will always make lessons more enjoyable than a bare-minimum-curriculum. In class, we touched a lot on how to write a good SAQ. This has been the thing that has stuck with me the most; I’ve caught myself using the format he taught when I communicate with teachers and even friends outside of school hours. For the structure of the class, Mr. Stampe has a healthy balance of student-paced activities and class lectures. Plus, each day when I walked into class there was a daily agenda on the board so I never had to guess or be surprised by anything we were doing. Beyond actual teaching, Mr. Stampe works to make the classroom environment light-hearted, accessible, and comfortable. The main thing he wants you to do is get your work done. He may tease you to get off your phone or ask you to stop talking to people if it’s distracting or not allowed for a certain activity, but at the end of the day, he understands that we’re old enough to make decisions on how to use our time effectively. The way Mr. Stampe talks to and interacts with students shows that he doesn’t see them as merely students or anything less than him. He sees his students for who they are as individual people with individual and unique struggles, needs, and personalities. Any student of Mr. Stampe’s is lucky to have him.”
Usayed
“Mr. Stampe is a really good and fun-going teacher. I really like his way of teaching you and his ability to explain the material in a way that doesn’t make it seem hard but makes it seem really easy. Mr. Stampe‘s able to create a crazy environment of easy ongoing learning, and we really understand the material. He really makes sure you understand the material, which really makes the class fun. Learning the material and remembering what we learned about Shakespeare in the spring. He really helped us understand the point of view. Shakespeare gave us an alternate view of how people lived their lives back in the day and also gave us comma rules. We use them daily, which helps us with everything we need, from writing to reading. We understand it now. What I liked best about the class was the environment. He would make the environment so nice and like a positive attitude environment, not like anything was really negative in the class. He’s really cool about dates and stuff, and if you have something going on in your life, he’ll understand, and getting things done is a lot easier with Mr. Stampe.”
Gabe
“I was in Mr. Stampe’s Pre-AP English class my sophomore year. Mr. Stampe is an expert at taking hold of any student’s view of English literature and shifting it outside of the box. The average student will examine what they read with bland stoicism, soaking in the gray words with a veil of indifference. But I guarantee once Mr. Stampe stands before you, and courageously echoes the words upon your page aloud to all in the class, a breath of life encompasses all. Stampe is unlike any other man I have met who studies the English language, for he does not only study the language, he experiences it. Through his mannerisms dull letters on simple paper grow larger than life itself, immersing the class in the pages they read. Once Stampe adds the depth and clarity one needs to truly visualize the text, any student can then form their own perspective. Although a character larger than life itself, and to be truly honest quite intimidating due to that fact, Mr. Stampe knows that every piece of literature is flexible, and a million readers will interpret a text in billions of different ways. His guidance allowed me to realize that through reading many of the greatest texts ever written in the English language, there is no right or wrong way to interpret literature, only each individual’s own perspective. His approach to every word, sentence, and paragraph that he reads is completely unique, and I guarantee you have never been in a classroom with a teacher like Mr. Stampe.”
Parent Testimonials
M. W. – parent of an English 2 student with a 504 plan:
“The first thing I admired about Mr. Stampe when I met him at Meet the Teacher Night was he just didn’t teach by the book. He brings real life perspective which is Priceless! This is something that the students can use in a real world. Second, he has a clear written-out objective for the students when it comes to the lesson plan, what they will be learning and what assignments are along with the grading policy. It was clear and straight to the point. There was nothing confusing about it. Last but not least, he is down-to-earth and that makes it easy for parents and students to communicate with him. Mr. Stampe accepts other people as equals and that’s hard to find. He understands that students also have a life outside of school, but know that school work is very important as well.”
M. P. – parent of a Pre-AP English 2 student:
“Mr. Stampe has an unwavering commitment to the success of his students. He strives to make learning fun while encouraging students to work hard and think critically. For instance, he not only teaches students how to understand the meaning of a literary novel, but works to ensure that students know how to analyze the context and characters of that novel. As a father himself, Mr. Stampe strives to prepare students for college and inspires them to reach their potential.”
D. M. – parent of an English 2 student with an IEP:
“Over the years that [my child] has been in school, I’ve always considered myself part of the team. Mr. Stampe’s passion for teaching is front and center. I know how much he cares for his students. The way he interacts with parents and students for one common goal is absolutely priceless.”
L. C. – parent of a Pre-AP English 2 student who had severe health issues during the school year:
“Your daughter or son will be lucky to be in Mr. Stampe’s class. My daughter was a student in his Pre-AP English class sophomore year. Unfortunately, she sustained a concussion during the fall and struggled to keep up with her school workload. Not being able to study at her normal pace was very frustrating for her. Mr. Stampe was a godsend. He reached out immediately and asked, “ What can we do to help ease her stress and anxiety?” This meant the world to me— he put her health first and came up with creative ways that she could still participate and absorb the material without causing undue stress or fatigue. He was very supportive and encouraging during such a difficult time, and his class ended up being her favorite!
I would say that overall he really cares about the students and engages them in thoughtful ways so they feel like their voice is heard instead of being told exactly what they should think, how they should write, etc. He’s very skilled at providing them with constructive feedback, coaxing them to dig deeper and explore their creativity. Mr. Stampe cultivates an inclusive learning environment and recognizes each individual student’s strengths to capitalize on those to help them succeed.”
P. S. – parent of a Pre-AP English 2 student with an IEP:
“The name of Mr. Stampe’s Google Classroom, “Stampe’s Circus of Sagacity Pre-Ap English 2,” tells his students and their parents so much about him in just those few words. Mr. Stampe looks for ways to bring a sense of fun and energy to Sophomore English class while teaching his students how to approach their work in a perceptive and insightful manner, the very definition of the word sagacity that he uses in his classroom name. How does he teach these skills in an inspiring and engaging way? Passion! He is passionate about who he is teaching and what he is teaching. There is nothing stale or rote about his class. Each day, Mr. Stampe challenges his students to be and do their personal best, and the way in which he interacts with them motivates them to want to meet those expectations. He sees each student for who they are, finds ways to make a personal connection, and looks for opportunities to enhance their natural gifts while helping them improve areas of weakness. He is one of those teachers who his students will likely look back and realize just how critical he was to solidifying their abilities to communicate effectively, regardless of what career path they choose. Being able to understand what other people are trying to communicate and being able to write effective, persuasive communication are invaluable skills that he prioritizes and teaches step-by-step, paragraph-by-paragraph. As a parent, I really appreciated that Mr. Stampe structured his class and instructional style similar to a college level course, yet he still made sure his students didn’t fall behind. Often, he would send reminders to stay on track when they were reading a novel or writing a paper and would make sure students received the information they missed during an absence. By reaching out to the students, Mr. Stampe let them know that he cared, and he opened the opportunity for two way communication so students felt comfortable letting him know when they needed assistance or guidance. He was always very responsive to emails and would not only give helpful pointers and advice but also would find something to compliment in the student’s work. If I could sum up my feelings in just one sentence, it would be, ‘I wish Mr. Stampe would teach English 3 and English 4 so my student would be lucky enough to continue to learn from him for two more years!'”
K. F. – parent of a Pre-AP English 2 student with an IEP:
“We love Mr. Stampe. I wish my child was going to have him again this year. This will be my student’s junior year, and until RHS, my kid had not been a fan of writing. While writing is still not a favorite subject, after a semester in Mr. Stampe’s class my kid decided to take on the challenge of AP English. I appreciate how Mr. Stampe always starts out with ‘what the student has done right or excelled at’ and then goes on to how they can improve their paper. Communication is a top priority for him. Any concerns I had were addressed in a timely manner. If he had concerns about my child, he let me know. When we had to go to virtual, he was available via the phone, email, or zoom. I was extremely impressed when he and his team adapted the material for the students depending on the class level, they would be taking their Junior year.”