Richland Two announces new director of the Center for Inquiry effective July 2022

On Wednesday, March 23, 2022, Richland Two administrators announced to employees and parents at the Center for Inquiry the promotion of Dr. Emily Whitecotton to the center’s new director effective July 1, 2022. Dr. Whitecotton succeeds Dr. Lyn Mueller who retires at the end of this school year after 22 years at CFI.

“I am honored and humbled for the chance to serve as the Center for Inquiry’s director.  I am grateful to be rooted in such a rich legacy of learning and energized for what we will grow in our next chapter,” said Dr. Whitecotton, who currently serves as the center’s literacy coach.

Dr. Whitecotton graduated from the University of South Carolina with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education, master’s in language and literacy, a master’s in educational leadership and administration, and doctoral degree in language and literacy. She has taught at Nursery Road and Leaphart Elementary schools in District Five of Lexington and Richland Counties. She has held adjunct professor positions at Columbia College and the University of South Carolina.

“As we welcome Dr. Whitecotton to this new position, I want to thank Dr. Mueller for her more than four decades in education, 26 of which were dedicated to students in Richland Two at CFI and Summit Parkway Middle School. Dr. Whitecotton has been a part of the CFI family since 2013 and is ready to lead,” said Dr. Davis.

It’s bittersweet for Dr. Mueller who says CFI has been her family, both personally and professionally. “I am so proud of how CFI has evolved over the years and have been fortunate to be a part of it from the beginning as a parent and then as lead teacher.”

The Center for Inquiry, located at 200 ½ Summit Parkway, is one of four magnet centers in the district. CFI offers inquiry-based instruction that emphasizes hands-on learning experiences, high-interest studies and an integrated curriculum for kindergarteners through fifth graders.