Sondra Archibald
Board Member
My Story
Sondra is a recent board member as of March 2024. In October 2023, Sondra visited Rock House Kids with members of her church, Calvary Memorial Church. A tour was given by Dee Lacny and Kathy Bartz, who sat down and shared the history, its mission, and vision for the future. Sondra signed up to volunteer that day.
Sondra moved to Rockford, from Chicago, in 1995 to work in the Rockford Public Schools as an elementary school principal. Within ten years and at her second school, with selected staff, Sondra was able to create a school where children were in a safe and caring environment, where teaching and learning took place.
“Growing up in Chicago, when I did in the 1960s, there was a community of caring. There were systems of support at home, within the family, as well as in school and church. Although we were not like the families that we saw on television; we still had a blessed life. In spite of the shifting social dynamics, at the time, we were still protected, by concerned and caring adults. We had a village.”
Sondra’s college studies began at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, IL where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Education. At Concordia University in River Forest, IL, Sondra received her Master of Arts degree in Education, and lastly she received her Doctorate in Education degree from Loyola University in Chicago.
In addition to a career as a teacher and school administrator, Sondra spent fifteen years in educational publishing. She traveled throughout the United States providing professional workshops, staff development, to educators and potential educators in rural and urban communities. Sondra was fortunate to visit Cuba as part of an educational delegation, where she visited classrooms in Cuba. Her visit to England as part of The Oxford
Round Table Conference of Women was an opportunity to exchange thoughts and ideas about educational practices.
Although Sondra has a small immediate family, of one sister, one nephew and one grandson. Her Christian and extended family is huge. Much of her personal time is spent with them.
As a young undergraduate, Sondra pledged Delta Sigma Theta Inc. which is an international sisterhood of women dedicated to service to her community. More than fifty years later, that commitment still holds true for her. As a volunteer at Rock House Kids, Sondra can see that it has a safe and caring environment, where the kids can be kids. The program is Christ centered. The volunteers and staff pour love and positive support into each young person that walks into the building. “It still takes a village.”
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