In some ways, it’s going to be hard for Tim Bush to stay out of the classroom. The first-year Trigg County High School principal and native Wildcat spent a lifetime there, and admittedly gets too excited when observing others teaching in their element.
But heading into “Year No. 1” as head honcho following the retirement of Shannon Burcham — and 18 months of COVID-19 concerns and protocols waning by the week — new challenges are ahead, and Bush is ready to implement his and his teachers’ vision to break through what has been an unavoidable slog of virtual learning.
While the use of computers and distanced learning has provided, and will continue to provide, its benefits, Bush — like most local educators — wants to get back more permanently in the classroom, where hands-on learning experiences can change the trajectory of one student.
SB 128 — the bill passed allowing high school students in Kentucky to essentially redo their 2020-21 school year — won’t affect Trigg County like it could other districts, Bush noted, because there simply weren’t enough Wildcats willing to “test those waters.”
Though the “redo” year is available for those who wish to experience it, Bush believes there are more effective ways to get up to speed with curriculum and development, without having to hit the reset button.
Previously at Madisonville-North Hopkins High School and Hopkinsville Middle and High School before returning to Cadiz, Bush valued his time as a teacher and as a coach before going into administration — and its something he says his constituents remain quick to remind him about when talking jargon and the job.
However, the desire to impact students on a daily basis remains, and Bush said it took some time adjusting to life in the office. The idea of principal can be antiseptic at times, but it doesn’t have to be, and his time spent with Burcham leading up to his retirement helped.
And thought it’s hard to have a perfect school year, but Bush has an idea of that formulated in his head, too.
Trigg County schools are scheduled to open on August 11.
