By Karen Hall

Editor

Marshall County High School has a new principal, and Schools Director Jackie Abernathy now has a Deputy Director to assist her.

Both appointments were announced this week, and the two men stopped by the Tribune office for a visit.

The new Deputy Director is Jacob Sorrells, who was assistant principal, and then principal, at MCHS until he left in 2010 to take the principal's job at his alma mater, Lincoln County High School, where he has been for the last three years.

"I'm really glad to be here, back in Marshall County and working with these good people," Sorrells said.

"It's a great opportunity to work with some good people," he continued. "It's a good opportunity for me.

I'm here to work for Ms. Abernathy. I will support her, the principals, the students and the teachers. I plan to be very visible in the schools."

Abernathy designed her organizational chart so the principals of middle and high schools report to the deputy director. She told school board members this was because she wanted the deputy director to be a real instructional leader for secondary education.

"I think I can be a real benefit for them, and that's what I want to be," Sorrells said.

One of the principals reporting to Sorrells will be the new man at MCHS, John Bush.

He has been in administration in the Coffee County schools for the last nine years, most recently as principal of Coffee County Central High School.

Bush took over a school on the "high priority" list, meaning it was one of the worst performing in the state.

"We were guilty as charged," he acknowledged.

Now, however, CCCHS is one of just 29 high schools to make the state's "reward" list, and is even in the top 2,000 high schools nationwide, according to Newsweek.

Under Bush's leadership, the graduation rate went from 76 to 93 percent, the number of students taking Advanced Placement classes and exams soared, and Coffee County seniors have won scholarships to some of the top colleges and universities in the nation.

How did he do it?

Bush said, "There's one constant: people will meet whatever expectations you have of them, so if you have high expectations, they will live up to them."

Another principle of his is, "We make it harder to fail than to succeed. We make it easy to say 'yes.'

"We will have the kids and the teachers all pulling together. I am so excited to be working with them," Bush said of his vision for MCHS. "The community as well. It's Marshall County's school, so we want everybody to take ownership. It will be a student-focused school.

"I get wound up," Bush admitted. "I'm a bundle of energy, and I hope folks feed off it."

Bush was born and raised in Coffee County and attended Middle Tennessee State University and Tennessee Tech. He's worked in every part of public education except food service, including jobs as a substitute teacher, para professional, teacher's aide, substitute bus driver, maintenance man, and coach. Bush has taught middle and high school classes, and served as instruction and curriculum coordinator, as well as principal.

After 16 years in education, Bush calls his career choice, "The greatest decision I've ever made."

He will be moving to Lewisburg with his wife Sunshine, who is an R.N., and their two girls who are six and five years old.

Sorrells is a lifelong resident of Petersburg, who was educated in the Lincoln County schools. His sons, age eight and 11, attend Unity School.

Both men officially start their jobs on July 1.