WQIO Ohio's Super Station
Madison Primary is beginning the 2026-27 school year with new leadership and a new role within the Madison Local School District.
Jessica Shaffner has been named principal and Regan Pore assistant principal at Madison Primary, the district’s newly consolidated Pre-K through second-grade building housed in the former Madison South Elementary School.
Both administrators are Madison graduates returning to the district after spending portions of their careers elsewhere.
Shaffner previously spent 13 years teaching seventh- and ninth-grade science in Madison before moving into administration in another district. She said returning to Madison as the primary school’s principal gives her an opportunity to help shape students’ educational experiences from the beginning.
“If a kid decides they don’t like school now, they may never give it another chance,” Shaffner said. “So we have a huge responsibility.”
Pore also brings extensive experience in education. She began her career at Bellville Elementary before spending 14 years at a private school in the Cleveland area.
She said early childhood education is particularly important because students are learning both academic and interpersonal skills.
“Kindergarten through second grade is my jam,” Pore said, emphasizing that students learn how to read and write while also learning how to share, communicate and treat others.
The two administrators are taking over as Madison completes a major reorganization of its elementary schools.
Students in prekindergarten through second grade will now attend Madison Primary, while the district moves away from its previous neighborhood-school structure.
Shaffner acknowledged that the closure of neighborhood schools has been difficult for the community, particularly because both she and Pore attended those schools themselves.
But the administrators say the new grade-band structure also presents an opportunity.
“We have an opportunity to do something grade banded this way that we’ve never done before,” Shaffner said.
Pore said the goal is to establish Madison Primary as a school known for strong relationships and high expectations.
“I think we’re going to raise the bar a little bit,” Pore said. “We want to be known as the place that knows kids and teaches them well and gives them a really good starting point.”
The new school year marks the beginning of that transition for Madison students, families and staff.
