Today we’d like to introduce you to Fredia Washington.
Hi Fredia, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Victorious Lighthouse Group had been in my heart for years before I officially launched the business in December 2022. It really grew out of my nearly 20 years of experience as an educational administrator, including 14 years serving as a Principal and Head Start Director in Port Arthur ISD.
Several years ago, I began volunteering as a mentor to new Head Start directors. Through those experiences, I recognized a gap that went beyond knowing the Head Start regulations. Leaders needed support understanding the Head Start management systems how those systems connect, how they impact one another, and, most importantly, how every person in the organization has a role in making those systems work.
That became one of the foundations of Victorious Lighthouse Group: “Every role matters, Every system matters, and Every person must understand how their work connects to the bigger picture.”
But my vision was never limited to systems and compliance. Throughout my years as a principal, my leadership philosophy was to “Lead, Manage, and Love”. I understood that I helped set the culture and climate of the organization, and I made it a priority to see people beyond their job titles. Whether someone was a teacher, classroom assistant, custodian, cafeteria manager, secretary, nurse, administrator, or support staff member, I wanted them to recognize the value of what they brought to the organization and the potential they carried beyond their current position.
That is where my identity as a “Purpose Pushing Principal”, became such an important part of my leadership. I pushed people to dream, establish goals, discover their “Why,” and see possibilities for themselves that they sometimes had not yet seen.
In December 2022, I turned that passion into Victorious Lighthouse Group, LLC, a training and educational consulting company designed to help organizations strengthen their systems while developing the people who make those systems work.
Since then, I have had the opportunity to support Head Start and early childhood programs across Texas, including programs in the Dallas, Houston, Texas City, Beaumont and Brazoria County areas, school districts, charter school organizations serving communities across the state including Harris County Department of Education. My work has included leadership development, Head Start systems training, mentoring and coaching, organizational culture, monitoring readiness, and helping teams reconnect their daily work to their mission and purpose.
Today, I am entering this work from a new place. After more than three decades in education, I recently retired from public education, but I often say, “I don’t retire, I RE-FIRE.” Victorious Lighthouse Group allows me to take the lessons, experiences, successes, and even challenges of those years and use them to help other leaders and organizations become stronger.
At the heart of it all is something I have believed throughout my career: “Every Single Thing We Do Matters” When people understand their purpose, understand their systems, and understand how their role connects to the whole, organizations become stronger and ultimately, the children and families we serve are better because of it.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It definitely has not always been a smooth road. Over nearly 20 years in educational leadership, I have experienced tremendous successes, but I have also faced my share of challenges. Some centered around compliance, some around building and maintaining the culture and climate of an organization, and others around helping people truly connect to the mission, vision, and “Why” behind the work.
One thing I have learned is that, “Conflict is inevitable, but what matters most is what happens when we walk away from it.” Relationships have always been important to me. Even when we disagreed, I wanted every person to know that they were valuable, their voice mattered, and their contribution to the team mattered. There were times when individuals did not connect with the direction or culture we were building, and some ultimately chose to use their gifts and talents elsewhere. That is part of leadership, too.
I also worked hard to create a culture where we could acknowledge when we missed the mark. We owned it, learned from it, celebrated what we were doing well, and then asked, “How can we do this better?” Challenges were never a reason for us to retreat. We faced them, learned from them, and used them as opportunities to strengthen our program.
One of the greatest examples came when our Head Start program entered the Designation Renewal System (DRS) because of our Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) scores. That meant our federal Head Start grant was open for competition. It would have been easy to allow fear and uncertainty to take over, but I chose to lead from a different perspective. I told our team, “This is an opportunity.”
We had an opportunity to take an honest look at our program and design something even stronger, something that reflected our community, our families, our children, and the mission and vision we had established. And everyone had a role. From instructional staff to support staff, leadership, parents, and community partners, we understood that this was not one person’s responsibility. It belonged to all of us.
Ultimately, we were awarded our Head Start grant, but we walked away with more than funding. We had strengthened our systems, enhanced our program, and developed a deeper understanding of what we could accomplish when everyone understood their role and worked toward a common purpose.
That experience helped shape how I lead and how I now support organizations through Victorious Lighthouse Group. Challenges will come. My approach is not to back away from them but to ask, “What can we learn, what can we strengthen, and how can this make us better?” Give us lemons, and we are going to figure out how to make some really good lemonade.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am an educator, instructional and organizational leader, trainer, mentor, and consultant with more than 30 years of experience in education. My work through Victorious Lighthouse Group focuses on leadership development, Head Start management systems, organizational culture, monitoring readiness, team development, and helping individuals and organizations reconnect to their “Why.”
People who know me also know me as the “Purpose Pushing Principal”. I have always had the ability to see beyond where people are and recognize what they have the potential to become. I don’t just want to help organizations become stronger; I want the people within those organizations to become stronger as well.
I recently retired from public education after more than three decades of service, and one of the things I am most proud of is the legacy and relationships I built along the way. At my retirement celebration, I heard from former students, parents, staff members, colleagues, community partners, supervisors, and district leaders. What meant the most was hearing the consistency in what they shared about my leadership: I had high expectations, I pushed people toward excellence, I believed in them, and I cared about them.
That is the legacy I am most proud of.
My leadership philosophy is simple: “I lead, I manage, and I love.” I lead with vision and purpose. I manage meticulously because details matter and accountability matters. And I love the people I have been entrusted to serve and lead.
I believe in excellence, but I also believe excellence and compassion can coexist. I can hold you to a high standard while still seeing you as an individual. I can challenge you to grow while giving you the support you need to get there. I never assume that everyone knows what I know or has had the same experiences or opportunities I have had. “All we know is what we know!” So I am willing to teach, explain, model, listen, learn from others, and pour into people while still maintaining the standards and expectations necessary to accomplish the assignment.
That is also what sets Victorious Lighthouse Group apart. We don’t simply walk into an organization and talk about compliance, policies, or systems in isolation. We help people understand how it all connects. “Every person matters. Every role matters. Every system matters. And every single thing we do matters.” When people understand their value, their purpose, and how their work connects to the larger mission, the entire organization becomes stronger.
We don’t always get everything right. No organization does. But strong organizations are willing to own what they miss, make the necessary adjustments, learn from it, and keep moving toward excellence.
I may have retired from one chapter of my career, but I have definitely not retired from the work. I call this season my “RE-FIRE.” Now I have the opportunity to take more than 30 years of experience, lessons, relationships, successes, and challenges and use them to help other leaders, teams, and organizations become stronger, more connected, and more purposeful in the work they have been called to do.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
What I love most about Port Arthur is that it is home! I grew up here, built my career here, and have spent much of my life serving this community. There is a closeness about Port Arthur that I really appreciate. If I talk to someone long enough, we can usually find a connection somewhere. Maybe we went to school together, attended the same church, worked together, or I know someone in their family. After more than 30 years in education, those connections run especially deep for me.
There is something special about living in a community where relationships and history matter. I have had the privilege of educating children whose parents I knew, working alongside former students and parents, and building relationships that have lasted for years. Port Arthur has been an important part of my story, both personally and professionally.
If I could change one thing, I would love to see even more opportunities for people to enjoy our city right here at home. Port Arthur is growing and developing, and I would love to see that growth include more quality restaurants, entertainment venues, live music, comedy, theater, and beautiful spaces where adults can relax, connect, and enjoy themselves, as well as more activities and experiences for our younger generations.
Sometimes we leave the area to find those experiences, and I would love to see more of them developed right here. I believe our community has the people, history, culture, and potential to create spaces that give residents even more reasons to stay, gather, celebrate, and enjoy the city we call home.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.vlighthousegroup.com
- Instagram: @iamfrediarenee
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThePurposePushingPrincipal/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fredia-washington-reynolds?utm_source=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=member_ios
