Bartley Elementary's new principal is a Callawegian who's dedicated the past decade of her life to the school.
TJ Quick took over as the new principal of Bartley today, replacing the retiring Connie Epperson. Quick had served as the physical education teacher at Bartley for the last nine years.
"I've never left Fulton, so this was kind of my dream job when I got back into the elementary building," Quick said.
Quick is a native of Fulton. She graduated from Fulton High School, and later from William Woods University with both her bachelor's and master's degrees. Her first teaching job was at Bartley.
She explained, when she began as the physical education teacher at Bartley, she primarily just wanted to coach because of the big role sports has played in her life. Once she began coaching, she realized she wanted to have a bigger role in the building.
"Mrs. Epperson, as principal, kind of pushed me into new and bigger roles. I didn't think I was quite ready, but she opened that door and then I could start to see the possibilities that could happen," Quick explained.
These roles included standing in as principal when Epperson was away at meetings (Bartley does not have an assistant principal due to its smaller size). Quick also was placed on the school's leadership team as well as the district's Positive Behavior Intervention Support team.
"I was able to start seeing things from a different perspective rather than the limited gym perspective," Quick said.
Quick acknowledged the vast differences between the roles of PE teacher and elementary school principal.
"The first thing I'm going to have to get used to is being called Mrs. Quick and not coach Quick," she joked.
Quick said she's confident she can navigate the day-to-day tasks because she's been able to do them on a smaller scale before. She explained she will be learning as she goes through the transition process.
One of the biggest challenges Quick anticipates in her new role is seeing a different side of her students.
"Kids come into class and they're smiling all the time and getting to play games and go outside. This year, I think one of the biggest challenges is that my job is going to be a bit more emotional,"she explained. "I'm not going to get to see kids all the time going outside and having a good time. I'm going to have to come in and break down issues."
At Bartley, signs posted around campus read "We are one." It's been a theme at Bartley for several years, and Quick plans to carry that culture forward.
"Our culture is to be like a family," Quick said. "These are not just my kids, the third-grade teacher doesn't just have her kids, these are all of our kids. I think we've really embodied that as a building."