In a move that drew public protest, Lauren Dressback has been transferred from her role as principal at Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights to the same position at the city's alternative schools.
The Vestavia Hills Board of Education followed through on a personnel action to transfer Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights Principal Lauren Dressback to the city’s alternative school during a special meeting Wednesday night.
In front of a packed room of residents and protesters from outside Vestavia Hills, the board unanimously approved the action before quickly naming Assistant Principal Kim Polson as the school's new principal on a roughly one-year probationary contract.
Prior to the vote, Vestavia Hills City Schools Superintendent Todd Freeman addressed the crowd, stating that the board would not comment on the reasons behind the decision to transfer Dressback, who was placed on administrative leave in February, and since then, had not been allowed on the Cahaba Heights Elementary property.
In the days before Wednesday's meeting, community supporters rallied in support of Dressback, with some claiming she was being targeted for discrimination over her personal life.
“Before we proceed into our business, I want to take a minute to address general personnel actions taken by the board. I know this is a topic of interest to many of you, and to many of those in our community. I want to clearly state that we cannot, have not, and will not, make personnel decisions based on an individual’s race, sex, sexual orientation, religion, national origin or disability,” Freeman said.
“I can assure you that all of our decisions are vetted thoroughly and thoughtfully to be in compliance with applicable laws and board policies, and with the best interest of our students, faculty and community in mind,” continued Freeman. “We are fortunate to have employees throughout our system who contribute greatly to our academic success and are committed to our mission to provide every child in our schools the opportunity to learn without limits, and that will continue to be the case. Finally, I do want to thank each of you who have contacted the board and me for your passion, for caring so deeply for our students and our school system.”
Dressback's contract terms remain in place in her new role, at the same pay rate, through June 30, 2026.
During an extended public comment period after the official actions, more than a dozen parents of children attending Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights, former Vestavia School System teachers, residents and others spoke in favor of Dressback, many of them framing the decision to transfer Dressback as a demotion or a disciplinary action.
"There is no other way to look at it. If you're transferring her from a premier school in the state to an alternative school, which is a totally different animal, she's being demoted for some reason, and we will find out what it is," Cahaba Heights resident Jim Whisenhunt said. "We're not letting it go."
Dressback has 21 years of experience in education, 18 years in Vestavia Hills. She was named Vestavia Hills' Secondary Teacher of the Year in 2015 and was named principal of Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights in the summer of 2022.
Kim Polson has been appointed as principal at Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights on a one-year, probationary contract.
Polson, who was named assistant principal at Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights in 2021, has more than 25 years of experience in education. She earned a bachelor’s degree in education from The University of Alabama, a master’s degree in early childhood and elementary education from UAB, and a master’s degree in educational leadership from Samford University.
Polson was a special education teacher at Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights and was selected as the school’s Teacher of the Year for the 2020-21 school year. She also previously worked as a special education teacher in Mountain Brook and Shelby County.
She took over as principal at Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights on Friday.
Editor's note: This story was updated at 10:37 a.m. to correct the Vestavia Hills elementary school where Polson was a special education teacher. It was Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights.
