It’s been almost a year since Dr. Courtney McNeely became superintendent of Moorestown schools. Since then, she’s seen how the district’s students continue to thrive, and her vision is to continue and honor the great things that are already occurring.
“… We can be even more,” McNeely says, with “amazing students and with the support of the community.”
“It feels impossible right now because we are top ranked,” she added, “doing great things for kids, doing great things for the community. But it’s not impossible. As our world continues to change, I see us changing with that.
“It’ll be my goal to build a culture here and a vision here that supports progress and supports the idea of the visibility of learning, and how we can see the results of our progress and of
continued traditions that we have built.”
McNeely began her career at Northern Burlington Regional School District as a middle-school English teacher, 12 years in the classroom, then six years as director of humanities. After making sustainable changes in her department, McNeely knew she could do the same somewhere else.
For the next four years, she served as assistant superintendent for the Buena Regional School District, then took the top job in the Pittsgrove Township schools. McNeely’s time at Buena was the greatest learning experience that she’s had in her career, she says. At Pittsgrove, she felt at home, having loved every second.
That position taught her how to work in a supportive environment, she recalls, but also how to bring the community along and raise its educational expectations.
“School – for kids – is such a huge part of their growing up, and to be so privileged to, as a teacher, influence their growth process, influence what they understand about the world, that’s big,” McNeely shared.
“Their parents get them at home, but we get them for all this time during the day,” she added. “As far as the administrator role, I feel like I’m lucky to be able to say to other administrators, ‘Here’s what I’ve learned and here’s my experience about dealing with kids.’
“The school is really the heart of the community, so for me, to have the privilege of being the leader in that situation is such an important role in my mind and something that I take so very seriously.”
Earlier this year, McNeely praised the Class of 2025 as students not only preparing for bright futures, but shaping them now with confidence and determination. When she first encountered Moorestown schools, she recalls being immediately proud of what she saw.
Many hands, she acknowledged, play a part in making sure that the students succeed.
“It’s easy to be proud of the students even as someone who doesn’t live in Moorestown,” McNeely explained. “There is a reason that this place is so well known for being an excellent
place for kids. Being an outside person looking into the amount of community involvement is huge.
“The kids work really hard, and their parents want them to have the best possible education,” she continued. “Our teachers do a great job of managing that, including letting them be good human beings.”
With a strong background in leadership, academic vision and successful development and implementation of capital bond referendums, McNeely is poised to lead her district into the future, but with that, she believes, comes fiscal responsibility, creativity and resilience.
“There’s a little bit of resilience right, because when you’re dealing with so many humans in the same place, it’s different than a lot of places,” she observed. “On any day, there’s around just under 4,000 students here. And then you think about all the staff that we have, and on top of that, the support staff and people coming in and out of our campus.
“When you think about that, that takes resilience, because there’s a different situation that comes with each of those.”
Earlier this year, the township’s board of education voted for a bond referendum in September focused on easing space constraints, preparing for enrollment growth and replacing aging building systems. The proposal also includes building upgrades to accommodate anticipated enrollment growth and tuition-free, full-day kindergarten.
The referendum, McNeely argues, focuses 90% on maintaining the models that have created the township’s excellent education system.
“Working on referendums comes high up on my list of great things, because it’s a tangible and noticeable measurement of care and progress in the community,” she pointed out. “When we improve facilities, the kids feel that they are important enough for a community and for their administrators to advocate and prioritize their needs.
Photo Andrea Mendoza
Dr. Courtney McNeely began her career in the classroom as an English teacher in Burlington County
“Facilities and referendum work to me are important,” McNeely added, “because like I said, it’s a tangible and noticeable look at caring about kids.”
Last year, Moorestown was named as one of the best school districts in the state, according to Niche’s 2025 Best Schools and Districts rankings. When the new school year starts, parents in the community might look to McNeely’s vision, but it’s one she already has: to build on the great things that have already happened.
“It’s not impossible when we do it the right way,” she believes. “When we make sure that we’re consistent in our vision – that our kids are still getting to be the center of every decision we make – and when we build that culture, anything is possible for us.
“I feel at home,” McNeely added. “I feel settled and calm, and I hope that that’s what the community feels with me here. We do have all the essential pieces in place for a long career for me, because I want to be here.”
