FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Cumberland County Schools (CCS) has announced principal leadership changes at Montclair Elementary School and Raleigh Road Elementary School. The Cumberland County Board of Education approved Dr. Erica Caine as the new principal of Montclair Elementary School during its regular monthly meeting on Aug. 11. Darius Gillespie, who currently serves as principal of Montclair Elementary School, will transfer to Raleigh Road Elementary School to serve as principal.

Dr. Caine most recently served as the K-5 math curriculum specialist for CCS. She previously served as a fifth-grade teacher and K-5 instructional coach at E.E. Miller Elementary School and as an assistant principal at New Century International Elementary School. Dr. Caine earned her Master of School Administration from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke in 2020 and her Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership from Gardner-Webb University in 2025. 

Gillespie’s transfer is being made under the superintendent’s transfer authority. He began working with CCS in 2014 as a social studies teacher at Anne Chesnutt Middle School and also served as an assistant principal at Montclair Elementary School. Gillespie earned his Master of School Administration from Fayetteville State University in 2019.