She walks into the classroom, pencil in hand, ready for another day of class. She swiftly finishes her test without making any mistakes. As the door opens and students file in, she looks up and gives a little laugh. She used to think that once gone, she’d never be back, but now she’s in the same place she grew up. This time, however, she’s the teacher.
Lindale High School has more than 25 teachers who previously went to or graduated from LHS as students.
“Like all students, I couldn’t wait to get out of Lindale and move off, far away from this town,” Coach Cody Bray said. “As a young person, I didn’t realize or appreciate the values that were instilled in me as a student of LHS. Coming back and being an educator at LHS I do my best to instill the values that were instilled in me."
Some teachers were inspired by their extracurricular activities. Growing up J.P. Fugler and Rory McKenzie were part of the speech and debate program and returned to Lindale to teach those fields to the next generation of students.
“I taught at Van High School for the first five years of my career. While I loved my time there and all of the people, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to return home and help lead the speech/debate program after my former teacher, Janice Caldwell, retired.”
In a poll sent out to the alumni teachers, over half said they didn’t expect to end up back in Lindale teaching.
“I did not plan to come back to Lindale even though everyone thought that I would,” teacher Amanda English said. “I wanted to move to a big city and get out of Lindale. I certainly never thought I would be teaching computer science.”
Some teachers traveled the world, but still made it back home to settle.
“I taught overseas in Japan, as well as Arkansas and Oklahoma,” teacher Stephanie Myrick said. “I came back when my husband retired from the Air Force to be near family, and I also wanted our two daughters to experience that “Lindale Eagle pride.””
In addition to personal reasons for coming back, many have returned because of the high standards and expectations the district is known for.
“Respect for teachers and students alike make this a better environment than other districts. Our town and our parents are interested in our school, and are always supportive of our endeavors and accomplishments,” inclusion aide Marci Johnson said.
In addition to being an alumna, one teacher, Renee Ramsey has the special distinction of having also taught 25 of the current teachers at the high school.
“I think former students return to work here because Lindale is a quality school,” Ramsey said. “It makes me so proud to see my former students teaching and leading our students— it also makes me feel very old.”
Overall, most alumni-turned-teachers agree that returning to Lindale to teach has been a great decision for them and their families.
“Looking back, this place is special because I always felt like I had support from everyone who worked here to encourage me to do my best and learn from my mistakes,” English teacher Alex Powell said. “It wasn’t always easy because it is high school, but when I look back, all I remember are the fond memories and how much everyone cares here.