Cheryl Kmiecik

Cheryl Kmiecik (Consultant) has over 25 years of educational experience as a teacher, administrator, and facilitator. She began her teaching career in a small K–8 building in the suburbs of Chicago, where she initiated a home economics program. Cheryl received her Masters Degree in Educational Administration in 1985 and became a principal in the fall of 1985. From 1985 to 1999, Cheryl was a school administrator in the suburbs of Chicago. She began to learn about the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence and the quality principles of improvement in the early 1990s and immediately began to implement what she learned by using quality tools with her teaching staff to help with decision-making processes. From 1997 to 1999, she was a principal in Palatine, Illinois, a district that received the state Baldrige-based Lincoln Award and later received the national Baldrige Award. While in Palatine, Cheryl learned the many methods of Baldrige implementation at the district level.

In 1999, Cheryl moved to New Mexico to become involved in their statewide initiative to use the Baldrige framework for improving schools and districts. She became a member of Strengthening Quality in Schools (SQS) and in her capacity as the Assistant Manager, attended a wide variety of training sessions, assisted with the implementation of the SQS initiative, and provided instruction and consultation on the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence and quality principles to SQS school sites.

As principal of Georgia O’Keeffe Elementary School (GOK) in Albuquerque, NM since the 2001–2002 school year, Cheryl brought the necessary expertise to establish Georgia O’Keeffe as a model Baldrige school. She has been the catalyst to move GOK forward with its understanding and deployment of the Baldrige Criteria to improve the school's performance in processes and student academics. Based on these experiences, Cheryl brings “real life” examples and knowledge to her training and consulting sessions.