Thomasville schools rely on homegrown leaders
Congratulations to the Thomasville Board of Education, which voted unanimously last night to promote Assistant Superintendent Keith Tobin.
Tobin, who will replace retiring Superintendent Dan Cockman July 1, has worked for Thomasville schools since 1984 as a teacher, coach, assistant principal, principal and front-office administrator.
Cockman has been superintendent since 1990.
Notable: Thomasville High School was one of 34 in North Carolina included in U.S. News & World Report's list of "best high schools." None in Guilford County made the cut.
The Thomasville system relies on homegrown leaders who know their schools inside and out. It's a good model.
Comments (4)
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Nah....Doug. Much better to get journeyman grifters who move on after the grift has played out.
Posted on February 6, 2008 10:01 AM
Sometimes it's good to bring in a leader with a new perspective. But it seems to me there would be a lot of advantages to hiring someone who knows the community and is respected in the community. Thomasville is a small city with a small school system, so it makes a lot of sense there. Maybe it would be more difficult in Guilford County, but I hope the board will consider strong local candidates.
Posted on February 6, 2008 10:40 AM
Doug, that would make entirely too much sense for the Guilford County School Board to ever consider.
I mean, who cares about such concepts as loyalty, trust, continuity, community ties and familiarity with the staff and schools? Surely, those concepts can't be of any value, can they?
I'm sure the Guilford County board will be swept off their feet by a smooth-talking, "big-name" superintendent from out of town. And I'm sure this candidate will be on the first plane out of here once he or she sufficiently stuffs his or her resume and collects some mid-six-figure paychecks.
Posted on February 6, 2008 11:29 AM
I know several teachers who did their student teaching in the Guilford County system and opted to take a SUBSTANTIAL pay cut and long daily commutes to work in the Thomasville School System.
That says a lot about both school systems.
Posted on February 6, 2008 2:27 PM